Reunions
by aphtrashbin
Summary: Arthur Kirkland, head of a Consulting business firm, learns in an unfortunate way that the world can sometimes be the most horribly small place, upon "meeting" the attractive, if seemingly dim, twin of his quiet new employee, Matthew. UKUS. (Brain-damaged Alfred, talk of previous drug abuse, bullying, and child abuse)
1. Chapter 1

There wasn't much to be said about Arthur Kirkland's life. It was organized, as evidenced by the calendars on his desk, wall, personal ledger, computer, and most recently, his smart phone. It wasn't incredibly eventful, a rebellious teenager though he had been, his college years, along with a steadily blooming career in business, fostered a sort of...cooling down...of his inner rebel. And that, despite how boring it was, was for the best.

Nothing was ever out of place, all of his friends were accounted for, and his entire life seemed well put together, and orderly. He was quickly, but continuously, earning a steady cash flow, accumulating a large wealth that was surely certain to be used on some sort of garish vacation with whatever attractive young man would settle down with him.

But, _that_ was the rub. Arthur didn't _have_ anyone who would settle down with him. Francis was busy with whatever it was he did, not that Arthur was all that incredibly interested in even _dating_ the frog (though, he distastefully admitted the man _was_ his best friend) once again. They had done that in college, and though the sex was incredible, they couldn't tolerate each other in a romantic sense in the slightest. Arthur might not have minded it incredibly much, but ultimately, Francis was a disgusting romantic sap, and so had dumped him so that they could find "true love", and Francis had been firm in cutting him off so hard that they didn't speak for the majority of their last two years in schooling.

And that was the last serious relationship he could think of since he was 23. Arthur was now coming up on 28, and 5 years of seldom one-night stands didn't have the thrill it did when he was still a young thing off at university. Now, nearing 30 without any prospects of a willing partner for the rest of his life other than Francis, who was already finding plenty of people who were willing to not only sleep with him, but rather those who desired to date and presumably, marry him.

Arthur, however, only seemed to attract young girls who craved his money and age rather than anything in particular about himself. He didn't even _like_ women.

However, he was _very_ interested in watching the new intern as he was picked up from the front. There was a very clear view from Arthur's window to the parking lot, where a young man, strapping, working on some clear muscles, a solid tan, and blonde hair that would make Rumpelstiltskin envious, seeming to be spun of gold. That didn't even get to the rest of his body, but more pressing, his smile, the man seeming to try and light up the entire world with one small smile.

Arthur watched him from the slightly cracked blinds in his room, held up with a pair of his fingers, as Matthew, their newest employee, gestured for the other man to scoot out of the drivers seat, get into the passengers side. He was happy too, and soon enough, Matthew was driving off with the other man, who despite looking nearly identical to Matthew, was so, so starkly different that it was hard to imagine them as anything close to being alike.

"Mon ami, what has caught your eye?" A bothersome French-accented voice grated on his ears, and Arthur turned his head to see Francis leaning against his door frame, Arthur especially irritated because he hadn't known that the man had opened his door, and so had no timeframe for how long he had been watched.

However, despite his irritation with the man who had gone to uni with him, when he opened his mouth to fire out an insult, nothing came out. He recollected himself, and attempted honesty. "...The man with Matthew," Arthur licked his lips before he asked the question that was eating at him. "Who is he? He's rather attractive. I've seen him a few times…"

Francis' eyes narrowed in confusion, opening his mouth to speak but nothing coming out. It was not like in Arthur's case where it was because he hadn't meant what he was going to say- rather, Francis meant whatever he had been about to say but he probably just realized that he needed to word it more delicately. "Ah...that is Matthew's twin, Alfred." He said, coughing a bit.

Arthur knew the name- particularly striking a cord because it was put into perspective with Matthew. "I knew an Alfred in high school...he was a freshman when you and I started senior year, right? And… Matthew was his twin too...strange coincidence, hunh?"

The other blonde simply raised an eyebrow, his mouth hanging open before he shut it, and licked his lips. "No, he is in fact, the same Alfred, just as Matthew is also the 12 year old we had meet in our senior year of high school."

"That's strange." Arthur murmured, taking his turn now to be befuddled. "Surely, if I knew them both, they would have at least reminded me, 'Mr. Kirkland, we went to the same high school that you did!'- Or something of the sort..." He mumbled, briefly imitating a soft-spoken voice that he knew to be Matthews.

"Well. I can't say that they'd be happy to talk to you." Francis said, though his voice relayed truthfulness, and a sarcastic undertone that was difficult to ignore.

Arthur frowned, "What the devil do you mean, Francis?" He asked. "Surely, if we went to the same high school, even if he looks different now, or if I look different now."

Francis simply snorted. "You really don't remember? Or, are you having trouble connecting the dots, mon ami? Alfred, the one you were just ogling- that man, my friend, was the boy we called Fat Al, Four Eyes, Pizza Face, and my personal favorite, Stupid Matthew." Francis said, rolling his eyes. "I have reconciled with Matthew somewhat, but admittedly, Alfred for one reason or another refuses to see me. We haven't spoken- and remember my friend, I was only one of your lackeys, let alone the fact you, Arthur, were the head of the boys misery, and from what I have gleaned from Matthew, who despises you, a large part of why dropped out of high school, and why, I presume anyway, he is still dependent on Matthew, even though it's been essentially 10 years from the time we met."

Arthur was left gaping. "Are you pulling my leg, Francis?" He asked, trying to joke but falling flat, his voice barely in a whisper. "Surely...I mean, I know I pulled some stunts in high school...but nothing like..."

Francis held up a hand, attempting to quiet him. "Arthur, I am not mad at you- I participated in it often enough. Matthew, he is furious- probably mad that he has to support him. He has made it clear to me he tolerates me so that he can avoid you." He sighed. "I am only really telling you so that you don't go digging into something you might not want to know."

Matthew was driving off now, that bright smile leaving the parking lot slowly getting darker in the sunset, which tinged his golden hair, orange.

However, Arthur simply couldn't let the issue go. Something sat terribly wrong in his stomach. "I know I was horrible, but…Truly, Francis, I was dealing with plenty of stuff at home…I never meant to hurt someone…"

Francis nodded. "No, again, I am also not free of blame, Arthur. However, for your sake, I would not dig into that further. If he refuses to see me, what makes you think he'd talk to you?"

Arthur frowned, but acknowledged that Francis was right- but, even if he wasn't interested in dating the young man, he would have to apologize, and perhaps explain himself if given an opportunity.

XXXXX

He had arrived early to the office the next morning. His troubled thoughts had kept him up anyway, so he saw no harm in trying to get in some extra work. Arthur, however, was surprised to hear a car pulling into their parking lot, not incredibly long after him. The man hadn't even had time to get a full pot of coffee brewing.

It was 6:45 AM…who in the devil would be up right now?

Glancing through his blinds again, his eyes widened as he saw the twins, Alfred looking more asleep than not, and Matthew gently ushering him along, urging him to get out of the car. The twin that had so attracted Arthur's attention was acting strangely sluggish, seeming to get off track before Matthew redirected his attention.

Good heavens, the boy must be a real bum, Arthur thought distastefully as he saw how Matthew was trying his hardest to get Alfred into the building across the street from the firm. Arthur didn't know what that building was, and neither did he care to know.

He closed his blinds, and turned his attention back to getting coffee in his system, and getting onto his computer to arrange meetings and other things. He heard Matthew come in, but they didn't speak.

Poor boy, Arthur thought to himself. He knew what having to deal with a bum for a brother was like. His own brothers, mostly older than himself, had their times where they were the most unhelpful people in the world. He didn't think that bullying could have done that to Alfred- no, it was much more likely that was a continued excuse that he was giving Matthew, the young employee who always seemed vulnerable to being stepped on by others.

Perhaps he would give Matthew advice at some point? Urge him to set his brother free unto the world, to sink or swim? But, remembering Francis' warning, he decided ultimately not to involve himself in his affairs. How Matthew dealt with his twin was ultimately up to him.

That day would be uneventful, and Arthur saw how the two left at the same time everyday, Alfred never driving. Probably didn't bother ever getting a license. Probably also did weed, or something else, Arthur thought disparagingly of the man with Matthew.

XXXXX

And so, life went on, Arthur turning his attention from the bum with his faithful employee to looking into more prosperous options.

…Which put him, unfortunately, back to square one. He had _no_ offers. Not that the bum living with Matthew had offered, but he was interesting. He was still _rather_ attractive, in a bothering sort of way, if Arthur was to be entirely honest about the bloke with Matthew.

Francis seemed to go back to normal as well- normal as possible it was for a man such as Francis. If any behavior ever displayed by the man could count as "normal".

Matthew was a good hard worker, spending long hours at the place, getting paid a mediocre wage, Arthur knew, compared to what he and Francis were making. He decided to bring the boy in for a meeting, discussing options between him and Francis.

They casually brought up dependents, trying to gauge who he lived with. "I have one." Matthew said, voice hard. That meant he didn't want to answer who was his dependent.

"Is this dependent able to work?" Arthur said, raising an eyebrow at Matthew, who scowled.

"No, my dependent is unable to work." He answered stiffly, his shoulders tense and his violet blue eyes suspicious.

Francis shrugged. "Then it is settled. You are planned to get a bit of a raise. You work so much overtime that we are guilty we cannot pay you more." He supplied, making Matthew's eyes bulge a bit.

"What?" He breathed, the comment soft and confused.

Arthur nodded, handing him over the necessary paperwork. "Indeed, we are giving you a raise, Mr. Williams."

"It will take you about an hour to sort through all of that paperwork, however. We are terribly sorry we are keeping you late to finish this." Matthew looked conflicted at Francis' words.

The man looked to Francis. "I must go get someone- I'll be right back." Matthew said, quietly, putting down the paperwork and leaving his jacket and bag, as a token to show he was going to come back shortly.

Arthur looked to Francis, and once the door was shut behind Matthew, he commented. "That means he's likely needing to pick up Alfred." He noted, and Francis nodded.

"Why he needs to pick up his twin is an entirely different question." Francis held up his senior yearbook from high school, and opened it up to a marked page- the freshmen section. "Here, we can see Matthew. He is named clearly, Matthew Williams."

Arthur resisted a guffaw at the braces and dorky smile.

Francis than turned back a few pages, to another marked section, and Arthur blinked suddenly when he saw Matthew's identical twin in a different section. "Alfred Jones." The yearbook labeled him. There was a dorky smile, with big thick glasses, and a lot of acne as well. However, this twin didn't have braces, though his teeth obviously needed them.

"There's my question. Different last names, and obviously, different standards. Matthew has braces, and much better looking glasses. Alfred, however, doesn't have braces, and look at what he's wearing. It's a mystery to me why they're so different." Francis murmured, and then they heard the bell on the entrance to the firm ring.

"This is where you work, Mattie?" A confused voice was speaking, a bit more distinctly American than Matthew's was.

"Yes, Al. This is where I work. I've told you before, I work right across the street." Matthew's voice was exceedingly patient, and Alfred only made a humming acknowledgement of what he was saying. "If you don't remember, you can always ask the Misses." Matthew gently reminded him.

He instructed Alfred to wait right there, Alfred sitting down quietly in Matthew's office chair, before the working twin came back in to the office room, sitting down and quietly asking for a pencil. Francis gave it to him, and then gestured for Arthur to leave the room. "For legal reasons, we cannot watch you fill out the paperwork." He said, and Arthur agreed, the two older men leaving the young employee to fill out everything.

Which, meant they walked away, and to Matthew's desk, where Alfred was blankly sitting, occasionally fiddling with the toys on the surface where Matthew worked.

Bollocks, the man was even more handsome up close, though he seemed rather dim. Francis motioned Arthur away, and the Brit did just that, but he was still close enough to hear the words Francis was saying to Alfred, who seemed shocked to see them.

"Hello, Alfred." Francis said, lightly. "Ah, it seems that we knew each other, before?"

"Matthew said I shouldn't talk to you guys." He said, glancing to Arthur as well. "He said you were bad for me…or something." Alfred's blue eyes admittedly looked rather terrified, but Francis shrugged that off.

"Come now, Alfred." Francis smiled easily. "Why would we be bad for you? I simply wanted to ask some questions."

"A-alright then." Alfred agreed quietly. "Questions, those I can answer…" He nodded. "Yeah."

Francis spoke quickly, his voice concerned. "Why do you still live with Matthew? Certainly, if you're not working, that must be hard on him."

"Ah…." Alfred's gaze was slowly focusing on something else. "I…Dunno, I guess…" His face went blank, and Francis continued.

"Well, we hope that you're not a burden on deal Matthew!" He joked lightly, still watching Alfred carefully for a reaction, and he got one, certainly.

Alfred's face crumpled a bit, and he seemed to grow somewhat agitated. "I…I…" He murmured, his gaze distant, before he nodded slowly. "No, I'm not…a burden. I won't be." He stood, gripping his arms. "I won't be." Alfred mumbled again, before he walked outside, making Arthur and Francis raise eyebrows. That had certainly been strange.

XXXXX

Matthew was finished with the paperwork in about an hour after he had sat down to do it, and he handed it to Francis with a short smile, calling for Alfred, saying it was time to go.

There wasn't an answer. Matthew frowned, and Arthur did to. "Where'd he go?" Matthew muttered, going to examine his desk. Arthur was collecting his things, and so saw fit to tell him.

"Ah, your brother got up a while ago, and he walked outside." He said, conversationally. His nicety was not rewarded, however, when Matthew turned around and forced him up against the wall.

"And you just… _let him?_ " He asked, outraged. "No, you probably _encouraged him_ , didn't you?!" He barked out laughed, his eyes wide, fear suddenly becoming a huge emotion in them. "Shit!" He dropped everything, trying to get out his phone but his hands were shaking too badly. "Shit, shit, shit dammit." He was cursing below his breath, and now Francis and Arthur, shocked to say the least at the sudden outburst, turned to each other in worry.

"Matthew, he's a grown man, he can find his way to your house." Francis said, trying to play it off, but he got too close to Matthew and the boy turned around and punched him.

"Shut the fuck up! You don't know anything!" He said, panicking as he got on the phone. He had only pressed 3 numbers, and Arthur's stomach sunk. There was something going on here they hadn't been aware of.

Arthur overheard the emergency operator on the phone with Matthew, the boy quickly saying he had a missing person to report. When asked how long the man had been missing. "An hour!" He barked, and the operator questioned it.

"Matthew, that's not a terribly long time- he's probably in the area." Arthur said, trying to stay calm, but Matthew just exploded.

"He's _brain damaged_ , you fucking morons! He can't dress himself in the morning! He needs a constant eye on him, and he's been gone for an hour! He could have walked out into traffic and be in the hospital for all I know!" Matthew said, before relaying the information to the operator, who would send out a description of the man to local police and hospitals.

Arthur and Francis were staring at Matthew, who was hanging up and frantically gathering his things. "Shit!" He said, dropping his stuff as the man struggled to get out the door.

Francis seemed stupefied by the information, but Arthur stepped in for him. "Matthew, dear, we didn't know. Let us help you. We can find him faster if we all spread out."

Matthew looked angrily between him and Francis, before nodding, accepting the help. "Fine." He said, thrusting some of his bags into Arthur's arms. "Help me to the car first." He grit out, and the Brit couldn't find it in himself to argue with that.

XXXXX

It seemed like Arthur had been searching the whole night. Francis had already called it a day, and Arthur also knew the police weren't ready to launch a search for the man. Matthew was still probably looking, but no one had had any success in finding Alfred.

Arthur focused on trying not to feel guilty over everything that had happened.

However, it was 3 AM, and he was exhausted. He decided to call it a night, heading back to his car from where he had been walking down Main Street in the small town by the office. However, as he was walking, he heard a breathy sob coming from down the alleyway. He tried not to let his heart beat skip too much in hope, the alley was only about a 2 hour walk from the office, meaning that it was perfectly reasonable for Alfred to be in this area.

He walked down it slowly, getting out his flashlight, and holding his keys in his other hand. "Alfred?" His voice was tepid, his green eyes looking for the source of the sobs, which were slowly stopping.

He turned the corner to face the wall, and even with the black eye and bruised chest, Arthur could see it was Alfred. His blue eyes were red, from tears by the looks of him, and he had situated himself between a trash bin and the wall. He was all curled up, trying to make himself small and unnoticeable. He had clearly succeeded until this point, which worried Arthur.

"Alfred?" He murmured, voice gentle. "Hey, how'd you get back there?" He asked, soft with him, and Alfred whimpered a bit. "Are you hurt?" He asked, and Alfred tentatively nodded at Arthur, still staring at him. "Your brother's worried." Arthur murmured, reaching out a hand for him to take. "How about we call him?" He held out his hand, not touching Alfred, but leaving room for Alfred to touch him and take his hand.

Which, after a bit of waiting, Alfred did just that, gripping it slowly, and allowing Arthur to drag him out from behind the dump.

"Good, good." Arthur said, and he wrapped his nice suit jacket over Alfred's back, not even pausing to think of how dirty Alfred was, and started walking him to his car. Once he was in, Arthur made sure his seat belt was fastened, and pat his shoulder, getting out his cell phone.

He called Matthew, and had it on speakerphone. However, it went straight to voicemail, though Alfred had perked up when he had heard "Matthew" speaking. Arthur nodded, and sighed. "I think his phone is dead." He stroked Alfred's back reassuringly, the man leaning into the touch. "It will do no harm to bring you to my home, and we'll get you cleaned up and into bed."

"T-that sounds fine." Alfred stuttered, but it was good. It was the first thing Alfred had said _to_ him, rather than _through_ him. Arthur smiled at him, gulping a bit as Alfred stared at him, examining him. "You're different." He noticed, and Arthur frowned.

"What does that mean, Alfred?" He inquired of the man, who paused to think about that.

"You're…not a teenager." He said, and Arthur scoffed.

"I haven't been one of those in years." He mentioned. "I am 28 now."

Alfred's face fell, and he nodded as he spoke again. "Yeah…Matt's told me…it's been a long time…" However, he curled up, and looked out the window, practically closing himself off in the process.

Arthur wasn't yet certain if he wanted to know what happened to Alfred F Jones.


	2. Chapter 2

Alfred was surprisingly cooperative. He didn't argue much, didn't even really speak much, unless he was directed and asked questions. He was still looking at Arthur a bit strangely as the older man ran the 24 year old a bath in his home.

"Can you do this on your own?" Arthur asked, and Alfred blinked, seeming to think for a moment, before nodding.

"Yeah. I just…need someone around to help when I'm done." He mumbled, looking to the bathtub. "I…. would rather you…. not see me naked." He finished, biting his lip as he thought on that, before nodding. "Yeah." He seemed to be content with that answer.

Arthur nodded, and smiled a bit nervously. "Alright then…I'm going to leave another message for your brother…and I'll grab you fresh clothes in the meantime."

He walked out the door, leaving it cracked as he walked to his bed, sitting and looking at his hands

Goodness…it was very strange. Alfred seemed to be not entirely _there_. It was like he could process and think, but only when prompted. Responses even took a considerable amount of effort from the man, when they were short. If they took a long amount of words to explain, he just didn't comment.

Arthur grabbed his cell, and tried to call Matthew again, getting voicemail once more and sighing. Matthew's phone was likely dead. Francis was asleep, and an absolute bear when woken up before he was ready- _especially_ by phone. So he left the voicemail, and another text to Matthew.

He rubbed his temples as he heard Alfred slip and shout, a large splash in his bathroom accompanying it. Arthur only got up to check on him and ensure he was fine. Alfred looked a bit jumbled, but seemed okay. Arthur asked him to cover himself a bit, before he walked in to put down towels on the tile flooring. "It can be slippery." He smiled at him, attempting to be conversational with him. Alfred only stared at him, until Arthur gave up and walked outside.

The Brit didn't know quite what to do. Alfred wasn't…he wasn't what Arthur had expected. He didn't know what he expected. But somehow, Alfred hadn't met it, and it made him dizzy with the thought of his expectations being shattered.

Maybe he was expecting a lazy, uneducated American. And he didn't get that, but rather, a man who was genuinely struggling with…whatever life had thrown at him. 24 and dependent on Matthew, his twin, because he wasn't able to live on his own.

He looked at his clock, and sighed as he saw it tick past 3:46 AM. Arthur was _exhausted._ But he knew that Matthew was likely still frantically searching for his brother, and he felt another punch of guilt to the stomach.

However, he was just waiting for the man to get out of the tub, and so, his eyes slowly slid shut on their own accord.

XXXXX

After a bit, he heard Alfred calling out soft "hellos", and Arthur jumped as he realized he had fallen asleep. "Ah…Alfred?" He said, wiping his eyes and glancing at the clock. 4:33 AM. Shit. Alfred had been in the bath for almost an hour. He got up, his body crying against the motion but knowing internally he had to help- Arthur had forced Alfred to sit too long in that bathroom.

The man had thankfully already removed himself from the tub, but sat on the floor, wrapping a towel around his body as he shivered. His eyes jumped up to Arthur in confusion. "You're…not Matt." He mumbled, scared. "Arthur…? Is that…you?"

Arthur nodded. "Alfred, yes, I'm Arthur. You left my office, the place where Matthew works, and I found you about an hour ago. It's very early in the morning, and I could not get ahold of your brother." He explained. "I took you to my home because of that."

Alfred looked to him, blinking a few times, before nodding. "Oh. Right…" He scratched the back of his head. "Would explain...why you're older."

Arthur frowned. "Alfred, you've mentioned that a few times…what do you mean?" He asked, trying to get an answer.

The American frowned a bit, before shrugging. "You should be…hmmm…23?" He suggested slowly. "Around there…not…not…" His gaze went distant again and Arthur took the chance to reach out and help him stand again. Alfred doing so quickly enough, Arthur took advantage of his confused state to get him back into clothes, and tucked him into the bed, Arthur rubbing his eyes as Alfred murmured in confusion.

He turned, and pet Alfred's hair, grabbing his phone and a set of pajamas, before he moved himself to the couch, and flopped down eagerly, awaiting the reward of sleep.

And he didn't particularly remember the details about 5 seconds before his head hit the pillow.

XXXXX

He woke up to banging on his door. Arthur practically jumped off his couch, landing on his floor. He groaned a bit, looking at the clock to see it wasn't even yet 8, but heard Francis and Matthew at his door. "Be right there!" He shouted back, getting up with a small groan. "I'm going to let you in, please be quieter…I found him at 3 in the morning."

He didn't even bother covering himself up, Arthur just dragged himself to the door and looked outside with groggy green eyes, at a relieved Matthew and an equally tired Francis.

"Is he hurt?" Matthew asked, immediately.

Arthur thought before shaking his head. "The worst is a few bruises. Like he got into a fight." He said as he opened his door further to let the two in.

Matthew rushed in, confused when he didn't see Alfred immediately. "Where is he?" He asked, biting his lip.

"Ahh…the bedroom, dear." Arthur gestured, wiping his eyes a bit. "He was dirty, I gave him a bath and put him in the bed." Matthew, though surprised, nodded, and allowed Arthur to lead him through his home, to where Alfred was indeed curled in the covers, still sound asleep.

Matthew sighed out a long, deep sigh, and nodded gratefully to Arthur, before gesturing they all leave the room.

"I…don't know how I'm supposed to deal with this." Matthew immediately spoke, a bit flustered. "He's supposed to get more sleep than this, if he got into bed around four. It's not…not 8 yet." Matthew teetered as well, the frantic energy seeming to drain out of him. "That's…not enough." He mumbled, and Francis caught him.

"Mon ami, you haven't slept, have you." Matthew shook his head.

"No…my phone died…I had stopped to let it charge, when I saw Arthur's messages and texts I immediately went and found you…because I didn't know where he lived, and he wasn't answering his phone."

Francis gave him a stern frown. "Matthew, you should know that is not safe. Who would look for your brother if you got into a car crash because you fell asleep at the wheel?"

Matthew didn't argue, looking ready to collapse. Arthur grumbled a bit, before he offered to let him sleep with Alfred for a bit longer. Arthur watched as Francis led the exhausted man back into Arthur's bedroom, before he released an email off his phone to his employees. Today would be a day off from work.

He got a few grateful replies, but just sat his phone back down, and flopped backwards onto his couch. Goodness. He was tired.

Arthur was interrupted yet again when a bothersome Frenchmen decided to join him on his couch. The Brit glared, tired and irritable, but let Francis join him, the two falling asleep beside each other with a few elbows to the side and grumbling about staying on their individual side of the couch.

XXXXX

No matter what had happened in the 6 hours that Francis and Arthur had been sleeping on the couch together, Arthur punched him as he woke up, as a reflex.

"You got too cuddly." Arthur muttered, and Francis cradled his cheek, his eyes wide, enraged.

"You! Stupid! _Rosbif_!" Francis yelled, his English failing him as he tackled Arthur, the two duking it out with their fists. Francis screaming at him in French and Arthur returning insults in English.

They were interrupted by a sharp cough, the two separating in order to see who had interrupted their fighting. It was Matthew. Tired, clearly so from the marks under his eyes, he raised an eyebrow at them, before they stood hastily. "Sorry, Matthew." Arthur said immediately.

"Arthur can hold a grudge a considerably long time." Francis easily continued, smirking at Arthur when the Brit glared at him, desiring to punch him.

Matthew just stared, unimpressed. "We need to talk." He said, blinking as he went over to the table, Francis and Arthur quickly following him.

"Yes, we do." Francis agreed. "I, for one, would like to know more about how Alfred came to be like this."

"You don't get to ask those questions." Matthew growled, irritated at the mention. "Alfred's still asleep. But, I will tell you what _I_ know about what happened to him, so that we can _avoid_ stints like this in the future."

Arthur nodded, and Francis quietly agreed. Matthew took a deep breath in, and then out.

And then he started.

"Well, Alfred and I are twins. That's obvious to anyone who's ever looked at us as a pair. But. Something happened to us, and we wound up in an orphanage together. As Alfred and Matthew Jones. Growing up, Alfred was always more rowdy than I was… he always protected me, getting into fights to make sure of it. However…it didn't…it didn't look good for potential adopters.

"That's why, when we were 8, we were separated. I was adopted, and…he wasn't. He told me not to worry about it, that we were still brothers- that we would be brothers, no matter what. I was angry with the people who let them do it. The two people who raised me… they wanted a child, sure, but… they didn't want a kid, they wanted a mini-adult. And I was their mini-adult. I didn't rough house, I didn't yell, I was always polite. And so we were separated. I moved to Canada when I was 9, and I thought I'd never see him again.

"So, imagine my surprise." He laughed a bit. "When I move back to the States, in a different state than the one I was born in, I wind up meeting my brother in High School? It was amazing. I hadn't seen him in 4 years, but we still looked almost exactly alike.

Matthew frowned. "But Al- he was different. He was so happy to see me, of course, but…four years where I had been in a stable environment had made me happier. And four more years of being in an orphanage had…well. It made him depressed at the worst of times.

Then he glared at the two older men sitting across from him. "And you two, you two hurt him. You established the theme for the rest of high school, until he dropped out when he turned 16. I wasn't allowed to see him out of school, but he hadn't known that. Alfred…disappeared from my life once again. My adopters, they made me focus on college, told me that Alfred had been moved once again.

"He…he hadn't been moved. He had just run away." Matthew sounded choked up. "They _lied_ to me- they told him if they saw him around me, they'd get a restraining order, call the police. They thought he was a _bad influence_ , since he had horrible grades and a reputation for fighting. I was heartbroken, but I dreamed of when we'd be able to be together again. I'd go to college, start living on my own, and find him, and we'd be together- as _brothers_.

"However…I didn't know that chance was already slipping away from me. I turned 18, and I was in college. I never was able to find Alfred. It was like he'd disappeared. As years passed, I slowly pulled away my adopted parent's right to filter who I saw and what I heard from others. I was 21 when I finally got the news."

Matthew's voice hitched. "My brother had gone into a coma when he was 19. He'd been in a persistent vegetative state…since then. 3 whole years- they didn't even…know what his name was until my name popped up on the records. I had a government job; my information was readily available in the system. So they contacted me, and I dropped everything, and went to his side.

"My adopters were already there, trying to find a way to pull the plug on him. _So I wouldn't have to know_. But they didn't know that I had already been contacted." He was crying. "I was so angry. So scared. Alfred…he had always protected me growing up, and I hadn't been able to do the same. I told my adopted parents to go to hell, and explained to the staff that they were not Alfred's next of kin- I was. They had no blood relation to either of us, and only had guardianship over me.

"They were forced to leave, and I told them I never wanted to hear from them again. Of course, they were hurt and they didn't want to do that, but they were forced to listen when I threaten to file a restraining order and sue their asses.

"That still left him in a coma. But he was no longer a John Doe in a hospital with no one else. He was safe- Alfred F. Jones. I assumed full responsibility of his care. I was working, but I visited as often as I could. I was about to be 22 when I was being told my doctors that Alfred was probably never…never going to wake back up." He was choking up again, wiping his eyes.

"I wasn't…going to listen to that. I didn't want to take that for an answer. I talked to him, reminding him of what there was to live for. My plans. My dream of us living together- I had been having a rough day, and a nurse had been bad mouthing "vegetables" for eating up all of the resources that could be going to "Savable patients". I wasn't having any of that. I yelled at her, and told her to leave before I reported her for misconduct. But I turned around, and…Alfred, his eyes were open. He was _looking_ at me. He blinked, and he was still looking at me, and his fingers…they moved a bit."

Matthew laughed a bit. "It was like he heard us yelling, and he wanted to fight her. Like he wasn't going to make me fight alone. He didn't have the muscle mass anymore to actually fight her, but…it was a relief. He was _awake_ , and responding to stimulus. He was responding to _me_.

"And, I said to him, "wow, was four years enough then, sleepyhead?" and Alfred's eyes lit up a bit. It was like there was someone there, recognizing that I was commenting on his bad sleeping habits growing up.

"Doctors couldn't believe it. He had effectively pushed himself out of a vegetable state. He had over a 90% chance of dying or being like that forever, and he now had a chance of recovery. Of course…recovering would be hard- he had lost a good deal of his muscle mass, and they told me it would be a long time before the ventilator and junk could come out of his body and he could breathe on his own. But he was breathing on his own within the year, and he was restless. He was trying. Alfred, he was trying.

"It was our 23rd Birthday when I was able to take him home from the hospital. We blew out the candles together for the first time in almost 16 years." He wiped his eyes. "And I got a job here a few months after, switching pretty seamlessly from my last job to this one." Matthew looked from Francis to Arthur. "Despite my reservations about you guys, you were pretty helpful… It was good pay, and the insurance that came with work was willing to help with the bills from all of Alfred's needed therapies. I'm still in a mountain of debt, but…the raise will surely help with that."

Francis was looking rather teary eyed, and Arthur covered his own emotions., afraid he too was looking rather affected by the story. "Matthew, we had no idea. We are terribly sorry for being…intrusive." Arthur tried to rectify his actions and thoughts. "I'm sorry that we unintentionally put Alfred in danger. But…he is, alright, yes?" Arthur asked, and Matthew nodded thoughtfully.

"His schedule's been shot out of whack, and he won't be happy with that." Matthew admitted. "He's been getting better with doing things, but it's slow work. He probably won't remember what happened unless we remind him, but hopefully, we won't be doing that." Matthew looked tired. "But…admittedly, my capacity to take care of him is running thin. I have to drop him off at a literal daycare across from work every day. That's not cheap, and it's hard on him because it's always loud and rather taxing on him because there's so much going on. But I can't well leave him at the apartment all day… that's not fair to him, despite what happened, he _is_ an adult, and he doesn't like being talked down to all day."

Francis and Arthur exchanged glances. "There are plenty of empty rooms in the office, you know." Francis said, quietly. "As long as he didn't prove to be disruptive, I'm entirely sure we could let him stay there."

Matthew looked up at him in disbelief. But Arthur decided to continue. "It would make sense. I'm almost positive we could find something that he could do when he was up for it."

The younger man looked between them both, before silently saying. "I need coffee before this, oh my god."

Arthur and Francis both only laughed, happy that they could…maybe help fix the mess they helped make for these two brothers.


	3. Chapter 3

Once things settled down in Arthur's home, the man having served food before sending Francis and the two brothers on their ways, Arthur laid down on his bed, and looked at the ceiling.

He felt awful for so many different things. How was he, then a 17 or 18 year old, supposed to know about such a poor home life? He had been having one himself, after all. But, it didn't really excuse the behavior. Arthur felt self-loathing crawl up over him, and he didn't do all that much to stop himself from going there. It was suffocating, certainly, but it was a familiar feeling.

That had been the first time he and Francis had slept in the same area since…since they broke up, he noticed. He had punched him upon waking up, certainly, but it had been a nice feeling to know again, the idea of someone in the same bed as you and keeping you warm at night.

… Perhaps he could get a pet- a dog, or a cat, or something of the sort, so that he wouldn't be all alone in his house all the time. Arthur had been told that they were as nice to have around as kids, but there was less worrying over school and tantrums, since animals didn't have to eat their broccoli or something.

Coming out of his childhood household, he had certainly adored the thought of living alone, perhaps finding a partner and living with them. In college, he had been utterly convinced that person would be Francis. Until the man broke up with him, since he claimed that he didn't love Arthur, and Arthur didn't love him. It had certainly felt like Arthur _had_ loved him, for all that it had hurt. And yes, they had since made up, but… since then, he had been alone, just like his childhood self had always wanted.

It was too quiet, different from all that he had ever known. And it wasn't as he thought it would be- he was…lonely, damn it all. Having people in his house, filling it with sounds, even him and Francis fighting and Matthew yelling at them, it had been…filled. The noise had been comforting.

He rolled over, and grabbed his laptop out of his briefcase, checking out his local animal shelter's pets. He scheduled a visit for the weekend, seeing a few dogs that he thought he would like and figuring it would be a nice change in pace. He had thought about getting one before, but now it just seemed like a good time to act on it.

He glanced at the clock, and wanted to flick it off for its audacity to flash its red letters at him- 11:49 PM.

XXXXX

The next day at the office was relatively uneventful. Arthur had a full cup of coffee when he walked in promptly at 7 AM, and it was gone by 7:03, precisely. He grumbled about needing a larger cup to store more coffee in as he set up the first pot of the day. He wasn't terribly surprised when he found Matthew and Alfred lurking outside his office, instead smiling a bit and gesturing them to follow him into his office.

"I'd just like to say thank you, again." Matthew said, before gently instructing Alfred to follow him, the man questioning it a bit, but following anyway.

Arthur raised a hand, to dispel the thanks. "No, its not needed- we put him in danger, this is just what's right." The Brit nodded. "I wasn't able to think of a good solution where he was in a room by himself, but my office is pretty closed off, so he can just sort of hang around this area. There are also things he can do in here, either productive or less so. As long as you're fine with it, Alfred, I am as well."

Alfred blinked, looking absently at Arthur before his eyes lit up a bit. "Wait…? You're talking to me?"

The Brit nodded once more, smiling a bit. "Yes, Alfred. You're a grown man, you have some dignity- one of those dignities is that you deserve to be spoken to like anyone else."

Alfred paused. "And…you're offering me stuff to do?" He hummed, uncertain. "So…Matt, then…I'm not going back to the daycare…?" He was apparently slow on the uptake, but his brother nodded slowly.

"Yeah, Arthur- my boss- offered for you to stay here instead." Matthew said, helpfully. Arthur looked over the man, who looked positively worn out, and desired to reach out and comfort him somewhat.

"Thank god." Alfred said after a minute. "Those kids…I love kids, don't get me wrong but…" He grimaced. "They're not…friendly with those…." He paused, looking deep in thought. "Different." He settled on the word, though he wasn't happy with it.

However, at his comment on it, Matthew only seemed to grow alarmed. "You've never told me anything about that." He said, worried, and Alfred looked uneasy, uncomfortable. However, Arthur also saw the small hurt in Matthew's eyes, and he frowned.

"Well, Matthew, Alfred might not have wanted to be a bother." Arthur butted in. "I know that I would hate feeling…well, helpless. And you're doing so much for him." He grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge beneath his desk, and handed it to Matthew, who easily took it, uncapping it and taking a gulp.

"Have you had massive trauma?" Matthew said, unimpressed by the comment as he slowly sipped the water, looking right at Arthur. Well, Francis would be happy that Arthur had done as he had asked… Those circles underneath his eyes were rather noticeable.

Arthur paused, and shook his head. "No, however, my home scenario was…less than satisfactory growing up. I had a concussion from football- er, the European sort- in the middle of my high school life, and goodness. It was like…not only was I treated with no respect by my family- that suddenly, I was incapable of even conversation with them, but I was also quickly taught by others not to be more of a burden than I was with the concussion- to not complain. I'm not saying Alfred's learnt that from you, Matthew…but, he might have picked it up somewhere else." He looked to Alfred. "It's been 10 years since I left that household, and I know I'm still terribly guilty of not asking for help when I need it. There's no shame in it, I know firsthand that Matthew doesn't think of you like that."

Alfred looked at him a bit, looking rather sad; his eyes glistening wet for a second, and then tears started to drip not too long later. The man nodded at Arthur a bit, trying to wipe them discreetly so Matthew didn't notice them. Arthur empathized with him- it was hard, he knew, to ask for help when you were already feeling so terrible about yourself.

However, Matthew was looking rather zoned out, his head starting to lean listlessly to the side. Arthur grabbed the bottled water, which Francis had filled a bit with a sleeping aid, and then given to Arthur to force Matthew to get some more sleep- before Matthew's hands loosened as he crashed into sleep. Arthur lifted a finger to his mouth to show Alfred he had to remain quiet, before Arthur gently helped Matthew to his feet, though the man staggered considerably, smiling dumbly in his exhaustion.

Since they were the only ones in the building, he brought Matthew to a quiet room in the back, and set him down on the couch to sleep, which he was all-too happy to do at that point, laying down and looking dead to the world. Arthur covered him in a blanket, before turning around and walking right on back to his office, closing the door and putting a "do not disturb" sign on the handle.

Once he was back in his office, Alfred looked considerably confused. "Did…did you drug him?" He asked, and when Arthur nodded sheepishly, a grin slowly came onto his face. "Nice." He nodded at him.

"He's overworking himself." Arthur said. "Francis insisted that he get some additional rest- he won't be much help to you if he's dead or if he's always tired."

Alfred nodded, and bit his lip. "I know…it's…hard." He murmured. "I don't wanna get in the way."

Arthur held out a hand to Alfred. "Well, Alfred, would you like something to do?" He asked, smiling kindly, and the man looked rather excited, his eyes brightening as he nodded.

XXXXX

By the time Francis had arrived to work at 9, Alfred was enveloped in a rudimentary task; happily humming as he did some of the smaller tasks that Arthur had been putting off because they were so tedious. Well, they were to him at least, because they didn't need much thought and it was very easy for him to drift off. Alfred, whose attention span was so much shorter and whose thoughts were that much harder to keep on track, it was perfect work for him, and he seemed happy to do it.

"Ah, Arthur, I see you have Alfred working." He smiled at him, before raising his eyebrow in a silent question on where he had put Matthew.

"I will be right back, Alfred." Arthur said, conversationally, before standing up and walking out, Francis moving out of the way and letting Arthur lead the way to Matthew.

"How was he?" Francis asked, and Arthur snorted.

"You only put a little Benadryl in that didn't you?" He asked, and Francis nodded.

"Yes, he looked ready to keel over and he admitted he barely sleeps at night." Francis said as the two went into the office, where sure enough, Matthew was curled up in the blanket Arthur had draped over him, snoring lightly. "I know this isn't a solution, but it's a temporary fix to him being an unsafe driver- he needs to calm down and let other people help."

Arthur and Francis left Matthew to his sleeping, and went back to the office, before the two older friends split off to accomplish some work.

Things were quiet for the longest time, and then Arthur spoke up. "Alfred, would you like some food?"

Alfred looked up and nodded; setting down the envelopes he was putting postage on for a moment. "Yeah, sure." He smiled, and turned back to his work.

"Ah, Alfred, I meant for you to come with me." The man blinked, and then stood, understanding the basic instruction.

Arthur brought Alfred out to his car, and started chatting with him, only reminding the man once to put on his seatbelt.

"I must say I'm curious." He smiled at him. "Matthew has told me a deal of what's happened, but I'm also curious about your side of it."

The blonde American hesitated, before nodding. "Well…there's not much to say. I'm…finally getting past the confusion thing, I think." He gave Arthur a little smile. "Meaning, I, uhm." He frowned.

"Was it something your therapist told you?" Arthur asked politely, and Alfred nodded, jumping off the reminder.

"Yeah. They've mentioned, that I, uh, was making progress. I was…starting to remember things better." He bit his lip. "Not entirely out of it, I guess." He laughed a bit. "I mean, it fluctuates- uh, meaning…" He trailed off again, biting his lip and looking at the floor of the car.

"Some days it's better, and on others it's worse?" Arthur supplied, and Alfred snapped his fingers in agreement.

"Yeah. That's it. I…have trouble staying on track, but it's nice to have something to do." He admitted quietly, before he looked upset, biting his lip and pinching his face in agitation. "You were right- I…I don't like being a burden. Matt- Matt deserves better than me…" Alfred's voice hitched, and he sounded ready to cry.

"Alfred." Arthur's voice was soft, kind. "Matthew doesn't care about that- he loves you so much. He wants so badly to be with you, it doesn't matter to him about your current state- he wants you with him, and more importantly, he wants you happy." He reached out his hand to the other man, who looked so incredibly lost, and the man took it, squeezing it tightly as he shuddered.

"His- his parents." His voice hitched. "They…"

Arthur cut him off altogether. "You should talk to Matthew about this." He said, voice firm, but soft. "He cut off his adopters because of what they did to you." Arthur squeezed his hand back. "Alfred, he threatened to sue them for damages, he showed them a restraining order, he almost pressed charges." He nodded, with a small smile. "He wants you to be with him, he wants to keep you safe."

Alfred nodded, licking his lips and wiping his eyes. "Thanks…I'm sorry." He mumbled.

"Don't you dare apologize for something that wasn't wrong at all." Arthur stared at him, before he patted his shoulder kindly. "Now, please do tell me what you'd like for lunch- it's on me."

XXXXX

They got back to the office with Alfred's choice of food, a burger joint since he hadn't been able to get Matt to make them for him at their home yet. Arthur walked him right on back into his office, closing the door to give them privacy, and ate his own chicken sandwich in a clearly vain attempt to act somewhat "healthier". Alfred didn't care one way or another, and Arthur didn't comment on the fact that the man desperately needed to put back on his lost body mass.

Alfred was practically glowing, and it was wonderful to see him happy, even if the happiness was derived from something so small.

Arthur got to working on his computer as they ate, and Alfred picked up his task once more, only needing to ask directions on it once. They worked in relative silence, Alfred humming softly but the noise wasn't a bother to Arthur.

Towards the end of the day, Arthur told Alfred that was a good job, and he didn't have to keep going on with that. "I think you've earned a rest." He gestured to the couch in his office, and Alfred put his work materials away, and sat down over there. "I'm planning on adopting a dog." He mentioned.

Alfred's smile shone in the room lit by setting sun and an old desk lamp. "Really?" He asked, grinning brightly, before he admitted readily, "I love dogs."

Arthur nodded. "Yes- I've been on my own for the longest time, I figured it was time to have something else with a heartbeat walking around the place."

"Don't you have family?" Alfred asked, curious, and Arthur stiffened, before nodding.

"Yes- we…we don't talk anymore." 

Blue eyes grew curious. "Can I know more about them?" He asked politely, and Arthur didn't have the heart to tell him no, and that was cemented by Alfred's next statement. "I feel like everyone knows what's happened to me…I'd like for once to know about someone else."

Arthur softened at the tone, which was so uncertain and confused. Alfred didn't seem the type to want his life broadcasted like it had been recently. "Well, for starters, I have three older brothers, and two younger." He murmured. "I was one of six kids. My mother-bless her heart-was never allowed to be on birth control. My father forbade it. It's good that I only had brothers. I could not imagine what he would have done if…" Arthur trailed off.

Alfred was looking at him expectantly, and Arthur smiled. "Well, were you…close?" He asked, a small smile on his face.

A snort came unbidden from Arthur. "Not in the slightest. By the time I was born, my eldest brother was already in 3rd grade- He was 7, and from there, it was 5 and 4 years old. I was an easy picking for them, unfortunately. And Francis- the smug bastard- he did his own fair share of picking on me. I was short, relative to them all. I was the youngest for a long time, until I turned 7 myself. And then there were 5 of us, and I was 12 when the last of the 6 came around."

"Are you in contact with any of them?" Alfred asked, concerned with the lack of names.

Arthur suddenly turned bitter, a hole that had been in his heart since he was 11 and his eldest brother abandoned him to the wolves. "No- none of them. The last news I've heard on them was about my youngest brother…ah- Peter. I was 19 when I was told he had been removed from our household. I couldn't take him in, I was 19, and he was 7. If any of us should have, it should have been one of my elder siblings. But, I had not heard from any of them after they had taken the second youngest out of the household themselves. They saw it fitting to leave me there." His voice was hard. "He was younger than me, yes, but I was only…I was only…11 myself."

Alfred looked shocked. But Arthur only continued. "Fitting, Peter was born after the fact… they had left the two of us. Presumably, because they believed Dad's jargon, about how we weren't truly…Kirkland's." His voice was soft. "Mum, Peter and I all had blonde hair, but…Peter had blue eyes, not green." The words were unspoken, and Alfred gave him a sad stare.

"I had no idea." The man stated, looking upset by the story. "I'm so sorry."

The Brit waved him off. "Either way. Mum swallowed a bottleful of sleeping pills when I was 12, just a few months after Peter's birth, and that is how I wound up in the States, with Peter, and my father."

That statement seemed to hit Alfred hard. "She committed suicide?" His voice was hoarse. He was obviously upset at the mention of a drug overdose.

"Yes." Arthur said, looking at him oddly. "Matthew only said that you had been in a coma since you were 19…how did you wind up like that?" His green eyes narrowed sharply at him, and Alfred bit his lip nervously.

"I didn't commit suicide, if that's what you mean…I mean…I didn't _actively_ try." He sighed, looking at the floor. "I told Matthew I didn't…that I didn't remember, but…I do, I know exactly what happened on that last night…" Tears were dripping slowly. "Don't tell him…will you promise?" He looked at Arthur, his blue eyes desperate. "Will you?"

Arthur was shocked at how open he was to discussing it with himself, but he didn't dare shut Alfred down- he knew that it was important to get it out rather than bottle it up inside, that was what his therapist in college had told him, at least. So, he nodded, and took Alfred's hand. "I promise- whatever you say in this office will remain secret from Matthew, unless you decide to tell him."

The blonde slowly accepted it, and swallowed thickly, trying to wipe his tears. "I assume, he mentioned…we weren't adopted out together." He laughed. "I told him not to worry- he deserved it… We had been in an orphanage our whole life. I promised him, that we'd always be brothers… no matter where we wound up." Alfred turned away.

"I didn't tell him that his parents hadn't liked me in the slightest. They had said all kinds of awful things about how rowdy and loud I was… I wanted him to be happy. Mom told me to make sure he was happy. He was always sick when we were younger… Other kids would beat him up, I had to protect him." He hiccupped lightly. "I had to protect him- make him happy. But…it was harder, from that point on. I was alone, suddenly. I had no purpose. My grades already weren't great, and it was easier to let me slip through the cracks in the American education system than to figure out why I wasn't doing well.

"I didn't see him again until I was 12, and we were in high school together. He was in all honors, I remember, in brand new clothes and glasses, and braces…meanwhile; I was mostly in general classes with 35 other kids. Most of my clothes were from goodwill. And the glasses were old, and the wrong prescription. I could see better with them, sure…but…" He shook his head.

"Not well enough to read the board. I was an easy target for my peers and teachers, you as well." He laughed, the sound mixed in with a sob. "I must have seemed really stupid…I wasn't even able to read, not _even_ with those thick glasses? I must have seemed dumb… particularly when compared with Matt…

"It was so easy…to just start it. Drugs, I mean." He sniffled. "I didn't want to, but I didn't have any other friends, and I leapt at the chance. I started to take meth, and my problems didn't matter anymore. I dropped out of school the moment I turned 16. Matthew- he was so innocent…he wanted his parents to adopt me so badly. I know it; he talked about it with me all the time when I was still in school.

"I wanted so badly to make him run away with me- away from the orphanage, away from his parents, but when it came down to time to ask him to come with me, I couldn't do it. I went instead to his front door, and asked to see him. How was I supposed to know that his parents already knew about my drug habit?" He cracked a small, sorrowful smile. "How was I supposed to know that they were going to threaten to call the police if I didn't immediately leave their property- and get me arrested, if they could- before filing a restraining order? How was I supposed to know that they were going to bar me from ever seeing Matthew, the only person I cared about in the world, ever again?" His tears were falling in two streams, his eyes red.

"I did exactly what they said to do. I broke my cell, and ran away on my own. Matthew couldn't know where I had gone…I was only a city away, and I was on my own for the next 3 years. My addiction…well, it only got stronger. I lost him, and in the process, myself as well. I so badly wanted to forget everything. I knew full well that mixing could kill you. But I needed more anyway… I was on the streets, using my own body in order to get my next hit. And eventually, it was August 21st, and I saw Matthew... He had just moved into his dorm, his parents were there and everything, even though it must have been his sophomore year. He looked so happy…I had to protect him from knowing what had become of me." Alfred licked his lips, before slowly continuing.

"I OD'd myself- well, not purposefully. But I recognized the signs of it, and I let it happen. I didn't care. Matthew was happy… I felt the world slipping away, and I just embraced it."

He laughed. "So- imagine my surprise, when all of a sudden, I…started hearing muffled shouting. I couldn't even understand it at first. But…one of the voices was familiar. But I couldn't move, I couldn't open my eyes. I was in a bed, and there was no sensation as strange as something breathing for you." He laughed quietly. "I didn't know how long a time passed between that point and the next time I heard voices- because voices, they were common. Not all of them were shouting, most of them weren't. Overtime, they became more clear, like I was being lifted out of a pool of water. I didn't even understand what had happened- I remembered seeing Matt, and I remembered going under. I didn't know what had gotten me from there to here. Or how long it had been since that night.

"Eventually, I realized that the person speaking to me so often was Matthew. I didn't understand- wasn't he in college? Where were his parents? I heard a woman talking about me, I think…she mentioned that the resources were being wasted on me- and Matthew, Matthew exploded at her." He laughed, a bit more honestly at this point. "And finally, I forced my eyes to open, so I could get a better look at this. I didn't believe it, because so much of it had all seemed like a weird dream…but there he was. And he turned around, and I remember his face. He looked about ready to shout in joy or cry. Maybe both. But the real surprise was when I made my finger move, just one.

"Matt, he was so happy, he made some dumb comment that I don't even remember and then it clicked- he was _talking_ _to me_. All this time...he had been there. I wasn't alone anymore." Alfred swallowed thickly, wiping his eyes. "I wasn't alone.

"However, it would be a long time before anything much else than that thought was in my head. I couldn't…think really well. I can't even describe it much; it was like my thoughts were always stuck in slow motion, flickering in and out like a buffering movie. Sometimes the voices would be there, but I wasn't moving with them, and other times I was moving but there was no direction or meaning to it. Matthew was there, and he was the only thing I was consistently able to concentrate on. It didn't even feel that long before I was in a house, and he was singing happy birthday- there were candles but I didn't count them. I didn't question it…I went along with it, I was so happy." His smile faded. "When I finally started speaking coherently, I asked him. How long had I been like that?"

Arthur was watching him with kind green eyes, and Alfred swallowed again. "I still can't believe it, honestly… that I'm…I'm 24 now." He laughed, wiping his eyes again. "It's been 5 years, and I went into a coma a teenager, and am finally starting to remember things pretty well…5 years later, almost halfway through my 20's." Alfred shook, upset by all this talking, and looking ready to breakdown. "I'm…24…. but…." he took a harsh breath in. "I swear I was 19 a minute ago… I swear…" Alfred was trailing off, his blue eyes starting to lose focus that for all of 10 minutes had been perfectly there, enough for him to ask questions and tell Arthur what had happened to him. "I…"

The green-eyed man gently wrapped an arm around him, feeling Alfred shaking as his control over himself slipped away from him altogether, squeezing Alfred tight as the man gasped, and tears came without his permission now, his lips quivering as his eyes stared unfocused at the wall. Arthur held him there, gently telling him it was alright- he needed to sleep, and if he rested it would be better. Alfred seemed open to his instructions, looking at Arthur, blinking, and closing his eyes as he rested his head on Arthur's shoulder, seeming to fall asleep at the mention of resting. Arthur didn't mind it, he simply held Alfred until his breathing evened out, and he was able to set him down on the couch to sleep undisturbed himself.

He continued his work for a couple hours more, before Francis interrupted him to tell him that Matthew was up and wanting an explanation for what had happened in Arthur's office. Arthur simply requested that Matthew come in, and the man did, still looking woozy, but with a considerably smaller set of bags under his eyes.

"Matthew, you really do need to sleep more." Though Arthur _was_ concerned, though he had to feign some of it at the alleged "passing-out" at his desk, and demand that Matthew see someone about insomnia.

After they had a "talk" on proper sleeping habits, they discussed Alfred, who was sound asleep on Arthur's couch. "How was he?" Matthew asked, looking slightly worried.

"I think he'll be an excellent fit, he was doing very well and then he lost all of his steam in about the span of a minute- he was growing upset, and I know it's crucial to get rest, and so I encouraged him to take some time to recuperate and here he is now."

Matthew nodded, sighing softly. "I don't think I should drive." He admitted, and Francis perked up.

"I'm certain we can arrange something, Matthew." He smiled, kind, and Matthew nodded, sort of waving it off. Then, it clicked- Francis was crushing hard on the man.

Arthur didn't know whether to scream or cry. He did neither, but Francis turned suddenly to Arthur and his pupils constricted- probably in terror.

Green eyes narrowed at him- we'll talk later, they warned. "Yes, Matthew dear, my car is very large- I'd be more than happy to get you where you need to go." He smirked at Francis, before scooping Alfred up easily. "I'll grab you a bite to eat as well, seems only fair since Alfred got a meal earlier."

Francis' face seemed to have morphed into a picture of displeasure, but Arthur only grinned at him, though internally it mirrored far more of a grimace. Matthew seemed open to the option, letting Arthur lead the way out of the building altogether, Alfred still fast asleep in his arms.


	4. Chapter 4

The car ride was graciously quiet. Arthur had turned on NPR, though the volume was low to be considerate to his sleeping passenger. He was driving in the evening light, the sunset coloring the car a faint red.

"Why do you hate Francis?" The question was what broke the silence, and Arthur resisted the urge to sigh in distaste as he turned off the radio and side-eyed Matthew, who was sitting in the passenger seat, looking expectantly at Arthur for an answer. When he got silence for a moment too long, he continued. "Weren't you friends in high school?"

"That is true. We were, in fact, in high school." He muttered, the word _friends_ sour in his mouth like curdled milk. In all honesty, he still got terribly riled up when people mentioned his and Francis' past relationships. He hoped that that would be the end of it, but _of course_ , Matthew was invariably curious, which only seemed to add fire to Arthur's ire.

" _But,_ it's obvious by the way you're talking about that, that you're not anymore. Even though he knows where you live and you opened up a business firm together." Matthew pointed out, confused.

"It's complicated, and I actually must say the frog still is my best friend. However." Arthur grumbled. "Let's leave it at _he dumped my sorry ass and broke my fucking heart in college and then didn't speak with me for 3 years_."

"What?" Matthew exclaimed, horrified. "You two _dated_?"

"Yes, we _did_." Arthur glared a bit at him, grouchy and the subject still a little too close to heart, particularly with his admittance of his life's story to Alfred, which had rubbed something raw inside of him. "Try not to act so shocked, dear. It is rather unbecoming of you."

"Why, though?" Matthew had to ask, it seemed, and Arthur resisted the incredibly overwhelming urge to groan at him and make him stop.

"Isn't it obvious? I _liked_ him a considerable amount, over time the crush had grown. Francis asked me out, and I practically _jumped_ at the opportunity after I had left my homophobic conservative father by going to college." Arthur muttered. "However, apparently he thought otherwise, and so after a honeymoon period, we slowly fell apart. He blamed it on how " _differently we loved_ "." Arthur snorted out some bitter laughter. "I blamed it on his incapacity to be happy with what I was. And after some time and distance, I blamed it on how he wasn't able to deal with what I had been transformed into by my father's cruelty and he took the easy way out. Maybe he was upset that he couldn't save me?" He scoffed. "Bullocks, the lot of it. Don't promise someone to help shoulder their problems and then falter under the weight of it all." He paused. "Although, again, he is still a person I would have to unfortunately consider as a friend, even if we didn't "work out", to use his terminology."

Matthew looked perplexed. "You had family problems?"

Arthur leered at him a bit. "As time wears on, dear, you learn everyone but a few had problems as a child."

And the ride continued in silence, blessed silence.

XXXXX

Arthur got Matthew takeout, and drove him to their home, assisting him into the small apartment by carrying the sleeping Alfred, and though he was appalled at the living conditions- he knew he had gone for a similar "look" following his college graduation. There wasn't quite as interesting a look as " _I'm a broke, young twenty something coming straight off from uni, I accidentally bought toilet paper instead of paper towels but oh well, that's what they are now_ ".

"Where does Alfred sleep?" Arthur asked, trying to stay quiet as he stepped over stuff all around the room.

"Ah…back here." Matthew said tiredly, setting the take-out down on the counter as he brought Arthur to their bedroom, a small thing with a full-sized bed and a ton of laundry on the floor. "Set him down, thanks so much for helping me get us back here…"

"Get to sleep yourself, Matthew." He said, irritable. "You're exhausted. Come to work with some more pep in your step, bring Alfred as well, he was a wonderful help today."

"Right…"

Arthur left shortly after ensuring the twins were in their shared twin bed, and he even put away the take out so that it wouldn't spoil before he made sure the place was locked up.

He supposed he understood Matthew's desire for closeness to his family somewhat. If Arthur's family had been better, he might have desired the same sort of life, with all his brothers in one household.

But that wasn't to be, he reminded himself angrily as he gripped his steering wheel tightly. _They_ had ensured that when they had all up and left him and Peter, an 11 year old and a baby. He didn't even know where they had gone, but good riddance to the lot of them.

He didn't need them anymore. He was 28 now, and 17 years had taught him not to count those who never wanted something to do with you in the first place.

XXXXX

He was scheduled to go look at adoptable dogs later that night.

Surprisingly, he was awfully excited. Arthur was starting to rather like the concept of another heartbeat in his home- in comparison to Matthew's apartment, his home seemed awfully cold, and sterile. It wasn't that he didn't like the silence, but it did seem rather unfriendly, less open and loving than living like that had been. Arthur even missed having _roommates_ , because when he was in college, in order to make living more affordable, he had four roommates who had lived with since he was a freshman.

He wondered what had become of them in the years since.

He had their Facebook's still, and wasn't that the purpose of those sites- to get in touch with old friends and meet up?

Maybe that would be on his ledger for after his appointment at the local shelter…Hm. He would have to keep that in mind.

His day started at 6:30 that morning, and since he had woken earlier than his alarm was set for from excitement of a sort, he went anyway and opened up shop early. Neither twin was there, which was a blessed thing considering how tired Matthew had looked.

Matthew rolled in around the same time as all of the other employees, Alfred in tow, who looked a bit excited himself.

"Hullo, boys." Arthur said absently as Matthew and Alfred finally walked into his office. "I can see you're excited- what about?" His comment was directed to Alfred, who was a little bouncy.

"I remembered it was Friday!" He said with a breathtakingly happy smile, laughing lightly. "It's probably not much, but! I know what day it is, and I remember that you mentioned your appointment with a local humane society for a pet!"

"That's not nothing, Alfred." Arthur said encouragingly, gesturing for Matthew to head out to do his own work. "Now, can you remember what I asked you to do yesterday?"

"Uhh…" He faltered as he thought, but Arthur simply gave him a hint.

"The photocopier missed you." He gestured to the machine, and Alfred's eyes lit up.

"Oh yeah! I was filing things tripl-i-cate, right?" He smiled, nodding as he let Arthur get out his file folders full of important documents needing extra copies, and got into his cushion on the floor, plenty eager to find something to do.

And Arthur let him get on with his work, truly doing his best to stay mildly on target, though his attention drifted to his likely dusty Facebook timeline, in a interested manner, and he ended up actually going on it to try and find his college roommates.

Arthur updated his profile with a new picture, and suddenly he got a notification from someone, the noise sort of spooking Alfred but it was easily remedied with a reminder that they would be having lunch in an hour- when the little hand reached 10 and the big one reached 6.

He checked the notification, and was immediately surprised. It was Gilbert Beilschmidt, one of his four roommates. "YO! You look like a bad case of early 30s hit you! It's been a long time, old man!"

Arthur grit his teeth, but that was just Gilbert. "You prat- you had already gone white in college, it's not my fault I'm just starting to catch up."

"That's low!" Gilbert typed fast. "I'm _albino_ , what do you expect?"

"It's been a while though." Arthur responded, thoughtful. "I've lost touch with everyone, except perhaps Lukas, but that is just an occasional Christmas card…"

"We should get together! It'd be nice to see where we ended up, it's been 10 years since we started college!" Gilbert was typing fast. He gave him an email address. "Here! Email me sometime! I think we're in the same state!"

Arthur agreed, setting up Gilbert a contact in his computer, before he then said goodbye, and signed off.

He looked to the clock, and saw about 30 minutes left. He was going to follow Matthew's knowledge of how Alfred liked to do things, and wait until the planned time to get food.

However, Arthur was hungry. So he ended up opening his business documents and skimming through them to try and figure out what else it was he needed to add to them.

Alfred got up when he saw the clock hit 10:30, and he grinned. "I'm starving!" He admitted. "Matthew rushed this morning when he realized he had slept in."

"Did you have breakfast?" Arthur asked immediately, and Alfred nodded.

"Yeah, it was only some fruit slices for the road though." Alfred sighed. "I didn't want to bother him about more but…"

"You should ask your therapist for tips on going about communicating your needs." Arthur suggested. "Because you were still hungry, yes?"

Alfred looked embarrassed now, and nodded. "I don't want to complain though…"

"It's not complaining." Arthur reminded. "You have needs Alfred- and if you'd like, you can keep some food in the fridge, I'll put my label on it…for whatever the reason, no one will eat it with that label on it…" He sighed. "But, anyway, its lunchtime now, so lets go grab us a bite to eat."

Alfred eagerly followed Arthur, seeming to desire to stick close to him. They were in Arthur's car and heading out to get something quickly. Arthur got a text from Matthew, and he asked Alfred to read it for him.

Alfred looked owlishly at the device, but took it, and bit his lip a bit. "Well, I think… Matt's saying he'd like something too?"

"Read it aloud, don't be shy." Arthur said carefully. "If you're stuck you can ask me for help."

Alfred nodded, before he started to read it, sounding unfortunately clunky and slow in his speech. "If you-re take-ing Al some-where to eat…" The man paused, his face settling in a frown. "Go some-where healthy. Get me some-thing too."

Arthur looked at his frown, and he scoffed a bit. "You don't like your brother telling me what to feed you, I take it?"

"Matt's nice." He admitted. "But…no, I don't think I don't like it."

Arthur nodded. "I never much liked other people speaking for me and telling others what was best for me. It was why I refused counselors speaking over me growing up."

Alfred nodded, thoughtful. "It's not like that…I just feel… he is trying his best, but… I'd like a bit more control, of some things, sometimes."

"Understandable. You're coming to grips with how long it's been since you went under, and you were already an adult at that point, weren't you?" Alfred nodded.

"I was 19." Alfred reconfirmed. "That sounds accurate."

"I take it the bloke hasn't let you have sex either." Arthur waggled his eyebrows suggestively, and Alfred snorted loudly.

" _Jesus_ , he thinks I'm a virgin." He snickered. "Little does he know, I was a prostitute and stripper in my time." He paused. "That is another problem- he treats me like a kid sometimes. Like he's trying to be mom or something…"

"Could be that." Arthur agreed. "What I understand of Matthew is that he's desperately trying to reform a familial bond with you, however given the troubles you faced as a young adult, he wasn't able to reform a brotherly, mutually supportive relationship. He loves you dearly, and so he's taken care of you while you've struggled to reclaim yourself. Perhaps a talk about recovery with him, if you don't want to do it alone, suggest going to the therapist to discuss it together. He worries out of love, Alfred. A discussion to keep both of you on the same page would likely be helpful."

Alfred nodded, and Arthur suggested that he write that down somewhere.

"Additionally, Alfred, you must admit that there are episodes where your abilities fall below someone who is self-sufficient." Arthur said carefully. "I do see his point in not letting you be alone."

Alfred scowled in unhappiness. "I know…it's still hard to deal with when I'm not like that, though. I _hate_ those episodes too, 'cause… I literally feel myself slipping away, like I'm stuck right beneath the surface of the water. I can see you all, but you've gone all vague and your voices are muffled and distorted. I feel…" He sighed, stuck in his sentence as emotion overtook him.

"Helpless?" Arthur suggested lightly, and Alfred nodded emphatically.

"Yes, that's it." Alfred looked upset. "I can't control myself really well most of the time, let alone when that happens."

Arthur had one hand let go of the wheel of his car, and gently held out his hand to Alfred. "It's alright, Alfred. It's normal to have problems with emotions after brain trauma."

Alfred was sniffling, obviously trying not to cry. "I-I _d-don't_ like it t-though. I can't stop i-it. I get s-s-so _upset_...and w-w-worked up…. _A-and_ …" He hiccupped, a short gasp following as he struggled to regulate his breathing.

"I won't tell anyone, and no one else can see you now." Arthur said gently, taking his hand and squeezing it. "It's alright to cry."

And it was good he said that because Alfred was breaking down in his car, his grip tight on Arthur's hand as he hung tight to him, seeming to try and keep himself rooted to where he was by holding Arthur's hand as tight as his hand let him.

He parked their car in a lot by the restaurant he had picked out, not wanting to overload Alfred with too much information. Alfred was still visibly upset, and he wanted to do more than just hold his hand. He left the car on in park, and then he encouraged Alfred to get on his lap so that he could give the man a proper hug. Alfred didn't argue, doing so and whimpering against him, leaning his head on Arthur's shoulder and letting the older man hold him there.

"It's hard, I know it is." Arthur said gently, and Alfred shook some more in his grip, his breathing still coming unsteadily. "So much changed, too fast, and you're changed now too." He stroked his back. "That's not bad, no, I wouldn't say that. It's different though, and change is hard by definition. But you've held up very well." Arthur encouraged him. "You've done so well, I'm sure Matthew is so happy and proud of all of that- recovering from a coma and more is no small matter."

Alfred nodded again, letting Arthur soothe him. The older man felt Alfred's breathing calming down, and he nodded, asking if Alfred was ready to sit back in the passenger seat. Once they were re-settled, Alfred seemed a bit more oriented than he had been as he grew agitated, but he was quiet for the time being. Arthur simply ordered a sandwich for himself from a drive thru Panera, and picked a few options to relay to Alfred for him to choose from. Alfred ultimately decided on the pasta option, saying he liked mac and cheese, and Arthur then ordered a second sandwich for Matthew.

He encouraged Alfred to eat if he was hungry, but Alfred simply said sheepishly that the movement of the car made it harder for him to do that. It made sense- Arthur had read somewhere that fine motor movements were more difficult, if not impossible after a brain injury.

"At least you have most of your memory capacity." Arthur reminded gently. "A lot of people lose that altogether. What are you most grateful about in your recovery?" Arthur asked him an open-ended question, wanting Alfred to think and respond a bit.

"Uhh…. hm." Alfred paused. "Matthew said…. I could have lost my taste buds. That would have sucked."

"So, you're happy you're still able to taste things, then?" Arthur rephrased for him, and Alfred smiled affirmatively, nodding quickly.

"Yeah, I've always liked food, and Matthew is very good at making stuff…it was nice to have that. I mean…when I was still not all here, I know I had to have a feeding tube for a while." Alfred said, voice soft. "It was…" He paused, and made a face of irritation. "The tube, it was…."

"Uncomfortable?" Arthur suggested. "I hate those things, I suppose it's a blessing I've only needed one once."

Alfred nodded quickly. "They hurt! When you pull it out!" He made a face. "But it was nice. The nurses didn't feed me, Matthew did. I think he made some of the stuff, I kind of remember him talking about mom… but it was nice, it was comforting. It tasted good and it was something to focus on other than…thinking about what he was saying, and trying to listen."

"I would have thought the catheter would have been the more brutal experience." Arthur snickered, and Alfred made a face at him.

"I'm _so_ glad I don't remember that." Alfred admitted freely. "I also don't remember a lot of what Matthew talks about with diapers and bedpans. I mean, the diaper thing can be hot in the right situation but in that one it wasn't sexy at all."

Arthur choked a bit, staring at him, as Alfred looked confused, before he grew hot with embarrassment. "My bad." He squeaked, his voice quietly ashamed.

At Alfred's discomfort and shame, Arthur softened. "Don't worry, it was a surprise you said that. I read somewhere that those with brain injuries can say things that could potentially be inappropriate. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone you said that." Arthur reassured. "And clearly, you saw your faux pas."

Alfred nodded, seeming to calm down a bit. "Sorry, my mind is still in the gutter from earlier… I haven't had sex since before… the stuff happened."

The older man chose not to comment on the word choice, even though clearly Alfred was meaning before he had OD'd.

"You're a lot better at speaking than you were the night we met again." Arthur said, and Alfred paused, thinking back.

"I… you found me alone, right? I _think_ you mentioned calling Matthew?" He bit his lip. "Right?"

Arthur nodded. "You were very upset, and I found you behind a dumpster." Alfred grew red-faced at the mention, and Arthur tried to explain what might have happened. "I think you had gotten into a fight with someone…you had a black eye, and a few bruises on your body."

Alfred felt his eye slowly, one hand going to his left eye. "Here…right?" He mumbled, unsure.

"You're right. Can you tell me something else about that night?" Arthur prompted him to think some more, the two stuck in lunch traffic out of the parking area.

He paused. "You were nice." Alfred mumbled. "You covered me with something- I was cold, but knowing how to say that gets foggy sometimes... You…you didn't grab me and force me to do something. You told me everything you were doing as you did it, and before you moved me…you told me where we were going, and why." He paused again, looking taken aback. "The _why_ is very important…usually…I don't get told what's happening, and if I do, it's without explanation- and…that's hard."

Arthur nodded thoughtfully. "Have you told anyone else about that?"

"No." He mumbled. "It's hard, sometimes. I feel upset when people don't tell me what's going on but I have no way to communicate why I'm feeling that way, unless there's a situation where I can describe it and what doesn't make me feel that way."

"Maybe you should keep a journal." Arthur suggested. "That way, when you have something come up, you can write it down to tell someone else later."

Alfred blinked for a bit, seeming to think on that, but smiled as he spoke again. "Yeah. That might work…"

The car in front of them was finally moving, and Arthur drove them out of the complex and back to his office.

He knew Matthew had said that Alfred probably wouldn't remember. He had to wonder what else Alfred knew that Matthew didn't know about.

XXXXX

Alfred and Arthur came back in, and Arthur dropped off the sandwich for Matthew at his desk, saying that Alfred had been doing great, they might add him to a payroll so he wouldn't feel bad about making him work.

Matthew was surprised, but Arthur was walking back to his office, where Alfred was slowly eating the mac and cheese, focusing intently on keeping a tight grip on the spoon. Arthur didn't disturb him, only sitting down beside him and unwrapping his own lunch.

Alfred seemed happy, and that was good, honestly. He liked it when Alfred seemed to be happy.

…Damn, the man was still really attractive though.

The rest of the work day went on uneventfully, Alfred managing to get through until the last hour and a half, when he just seemed to crash and burn. He didn't do it unconsciously though, this time he alerted Arthur to it, and the man was able to better help him lay on the couch, being sure to tell Alfred exactly what was going on in the meantime.

Alfred smiled a bit at him, and gladly accepted a blanket to curl up in as he relaxed on the couch, his vision going out of focus. "You…you're nice." Alfred admitted. "It's a good diff'rent…" His words were coming out mushy. "Mmm…. rub my back…"

Arthur grabbed his laptop, glad to indulge them both a bit as he sat beside Alfred on the couch, rubbing the younger man's back, asking if he wanted to lay on Arthur's lap. He nodded after a while, seeming to lose his words for the time being. Alfred seemed very content, falling asleep like that.

XXXXX

The end of the day went well. Matthew and Alfred left, Alfred letting Matthew lead him out while the twin responsible for his care didn't talk to him, and while Arthur wanted to say something, he didn't want to butt in.

He packed up, and headed over to the humane society.

Arthur got suckered right into a pair that was very hard to separate. A 3-year-old mutt with a mottled coat, and her 6-month-old black kitten buddy- the dog was named Cinnamon, and she was described as a shy and loving lapdog, that would do best in a quiet household. Her kitten pal was named Kiki, and she was a bit more playful, but also took some warming up to you in order for her to be happy. He spent 10 minutes in the playpen with the pair, before he was totally sold, hook line and sinker.

The process was started tonight, and he paid the fees for the animals. They both had to go through some last minute items, but that would be that. He would be picking them up tomorrow at 3 PM, and he set that on his calendar so that he was sure to remember.

But really- how could he forget it on a quiet Saturday?


	5. Chapter 5

Saturday had been a blur. He had been rapidly exchanging emails with Gilbert, who had somehow gotten Vlad's, who was still in touch with Natalia, and Arthur called Lukas.

They ended up on a group Skype call at noon Arthur's time.

Lukas looked about the same as he did in college, with less acne, of course.

Gilbert was the same, perhaps a bit leaner. He had gained 10 pounds in college, but he attested to growing up extremely malnourished and so remained short.

Natalia was beautiful as always, apparently having come home from a runway show in New York. She modeled these days for extra money.

And Vlad was baffled at them all, his younger brother on his lap.

"And then there were 5." Arthur said archly, and Lukas snickered.

"It has been a long while." The Norwegian admitted. "I am in Norway, of course, but I was planning on coming to the States at some point or another."

Vlad cursed in Romanian. "You guys have it so easy!" He complained. The Romanian man had his parents pass away the month before they graduated- meaning he couldn't walk in order to go care for his brother, who was then only an infant. "I wish I could go back to the states, but heh, money is so short!"

Natalia shrugged evenly. "It would be no hassle for me- nor Arthur, from what I hear from business circles- to assist you in transportation. Arthur, you live outside of Manhattan, correct?"

Arthur paused, before agreeing. "Yes- but, how did you know that, Natasha?"

The Belorussian woman shrugged, refusing to give up her knowledge.

"Manhattan!" Gilbert exclaimed, outraged. "We've been living in the same city for the past few years and we _never saw each other!_ "

"Gil, calm down." Arthur muttered. "I have never been a people person."

"Ah….did Francis ever talk to you again?" Vlad asked. "I still kind of want to punch him for that stunt…"

Arthur paused, and Natasha snorted, before answering. "Yes, they got back in touch, Vlad. I imagine Arthur punched him a fair bit by what I heard in gossip- our Arthur was never a wilting flower, _despite_ how pathetic he looked after Francis dumped him and said he didn't want to see him or talk to him again."

Gilbert growled. "Asshole, still. Ugh. He and Antonio kept on but dropped me like a piece of trash after I brought up you to him. That's fine- I didn't want to be friends with someone who'd hurt you like that anyway!"

"How many of us are in relationships- we made a bet." Lukas said.

"Alright, I'm still single. Anyone who betted on me, you win." Arthur said immediately.

"Dammit…" Gilbert muttered. "I only bet otherwise to make you feel better…"

Natasha spoke next, smirking. "My wife of two years is _absolutely_ a doll."

"Dammit!" Gilbert shouted, realizing he had lost 2/5 bets he had made.

Lukas nodded, sighing. "Ultimately, it should come as no surprise that though I am dating, I have not made any formal commitments."

"So, not single, but not married either. I win that bet." Arthur smirked in triumph.

Vlad shrugged. "I'm engaged... But I don't imagine I'd ever be able to marry him until we're out of Eastern Europe- we made that bet before I had to move back here."

Arthur nodded, one loss for everyone then, since Vlad was the most romantically inclined of the lot, they had all guessed he would be the first to marry.

"And you, Gilbert?" Natasha asked, ready to be the winner with the most correct. "Still "forever alone", I take it?"

"You're going to have to pay up, bitch!" He lifted his ring finger to the camera, showing off his wedding ring. "I married _before_ you!"

Vlad, Lukas, and Natalia all took double takes at that, but Gilbert smirked gleefully.

"Who made _that_ mistake?" Lukas muttered, and Gilbert glared at the camera.

"I'll have you know Elizabeta and I are _very_ happy! Although, technically, its all three of us, Roderich, Lizzy, and myself, but we picked two to get married, so we got _some_ tax breaks!"

They were all quiet, until Arthur spoke up for them and broke the silence by giggling, "Kinky." The other four broke out in sudden laughing fits, and Gilbert's face turned red.

"We are still very happy for you though, Gil." Arthur rectified. "However, that is still wonderful. And, I win- I called everyone except Vlad."

"You win- you get to ask whatever you want of us." Lukas said in defeat, before looking to Arthur expectantly.

"I expect you all to be here sometime in this year." He sniffed. "A group reunion- I thoroughly insist that it's been too long."

They were all more than happy to agree to that.

Then, he did a last once over of his house, and ensured that he hadn't received any calls- strangely, he had received one from Matthew, but he assumed it was a butt dial since there was only strange background noise in the voicemail- this was common occurrence, which he found unfortunate.

Of course, once that was all settled, he was on his way to the humane society, going early to start filling out the last of the paperwork, and of course, pick out leashes and collars for his dog and cat. It would be wonderful to have feet around the house, he felt like it would be a positive step forward.

And all of a sudden, he was putting two animals in his car, a dog and a small cat, the cat sitting in a crate with the dog in the front seat. She was panting, and he rolled down the window slightly for the mid-sized dog to stick her snout outside a bit.

Arriving home was easy, he let the animals out to explore a bit, setting out the food and water in bowls in the laundry room, and making sure the pet beds were out as well, in the den and his bedroom. The dog, Cinnamon, was racing around the house, smelling everything.

Arthur plopped down on his favorite chair, and got out a cat toy to play with Kiki, the little rascal finding his shoe more interesting to play with than the feather toy. He didn't mind, the kitten was warm and purring, and his dog soon trailed behind her, resting at Arthur's feet.

For the first time in a long time, Arthur felt a semblance of contentment with his life, and the rest of the night was easy, and dinner didn't feel as horribly lonely as it usually did.

XXXXX

Sunday was a day meant for relaxing. He was reading the morning news, when his eyes caught something in the paper.

Matthew Williams.

Car accident.

Hospital.

The words all blurred together, and Arthur felt his heart slamming in his chest as they slowly came together to make sense.

According to the paper, they had just identified the victim in a car accident on Friday as Matthew Williams, who had been hospitalized since due to injury.

The time was 9:30, but damn if he wasn't going to call Francis and whip him into action.

As soon as he was up, Francis was off and racing to the hospital to be with Matthew, and Arthur had raced to the Williams home to find Alfred, finding the spare key Matthew had mumbled about the day he had dropped him off exactly where the boy had mentioned it to be. He opened the door and yelled for him.

"Alfred!" Arthur's voice hit some sort of panic, but he just had to calm down- the door had been locked, meaning, Alfred was in the house somewhere.

With that, he struggled to slow his breathing, and he walked through the house, becoming quiet and trying to find where Alfred was hiding.

"Alfred? It's Arthur." He identified himself after realizing Alfred was probably hiding, since for all he knew Arthur was a burglar or something else of that sort. "Are you here? Are you okay? Matthew's been hurt- I came to find you the moment I knew."

As he wandered, he eventually heard weak sobbing, and his heart cried out for Alfred. He had been here alone, for not quite two days. The kitchen was a mess- he had tried to make himself something to eat and failed horribly, it seemed. "Alfred? Where are you, it's Arthur, I'm here to help you."

After a bit more of searching, the sound of the sobs became clear. They were coming from under the bed. "I keep finding you like this." He joked softly, bending over to get a better look at him. "Look at you, you poor thing." Arthur lay down beside him, reaching his hand part of the way under the bed. "Will you come out with me? I'll get you something to eat…and whatever else you need."

Alfred hiccupped, his eyes foggy, and teary. "Matt…" He cried out weakly. "Where's…. Matt…?"

"Matthew's been hurt." Arthur said quietly. "He's okay, he's being kept in a drug induced coma while the doctors sort out his injuries."

Alfred's face crumpled, and he closed in on himself, crying louder. "I's all my fault…" He gasped as he fell apart in front of Arthur. "They were r-right…my fault…my…."

"Alfred F. Jones." Arthur said immediately. "What happened to your brother is the opposite of your fault!" His hand was out, in front of Alfred's face. "Your brother is going to wake up in that hospital, and his first concern is going to be what happened to you, and that is precisely what he's going to want to figure out. If they don't know about where you are or how you are, I'm damned sure that Matthew will move heaven and hell to find you." He nodded. "He's going to be worried sick. As he should be- I warned him, and Francis warned him that he wasn't getting enough sleep, and this is the price he's paid. So, in the meantime, lets get you sorted out, into clean clothes and given a full belly, so that we can help him too- and so we can give him a piece of our minds!"

Alfred stared at him, tears still filling his eyes, and he nodded slowly, tearfully, gripping Arthur's hand and letting him drag him out from under the bed.

The older man immediately got to work gathering up some of Alfred's things, a suitcase full of them, while he directed Alfred to pack any belongings he wanted to have with them while Matthew was in the hospital.

"Until Matthew is alright, you're not going to live alone, I won't allow it. So, you'll live in my home until further notice- pack whatever you think is needed."

Arthur then packed the medicine cabinet as well, seeing medications that Alfred probably didn't take Friday or Saturday night. He continually checked in on Alfred, trying to keep him directed, but it seemed every time Arthur went out of sight the man fell back to pieces.

Arthur settled on wrapping him up in a blanket, and hoisting him onto his back as he asked him what else he wanted. Getting answers was slow, but it was faster and less hard on Alfred, it seemed. The man seemed traumatized, which was explained easily enough by the fact he had likely thought himself abandoned again. He had a fair amount of things packed, and he told Alfred that they were going now. He locked up the house, before he arduously carried Alfred and his belongings to his car, setting Alfred down in the back seat, and furiously packing everything into his car.

He drove off, and managed to get Francis on the phone, demanding to know more about the situation now that Alfred was safe and with someone.

"Mon ami, Matthew is going to be fine, it seems." Francis said, sounding relieved. "They're waking him up in an hour, the surgery went smoothly this morning, apparently, before I even arrived. Internal bleeding, and he's still in the ICU, but it looks like he's going to survive."

"I'm going to punch him." Arthur muttered. "We told him."

Francis sounded irritated. "Arthur, don't get on his back- he's going to wake up and panic. He'll know the consequences of this, he's going to want to see Alfred immediately. How is he?"

Arthur looked in the back in his rearview mirror, to where Alfred sat, rocking in his seat with tears still dripping down his face, before he turned his attention back on the road. "It's bad, Francis. He's fine, physically, but emotionally it's a different story. Ask Matthew about his medication when you get a chance, okay? Alfred needs to be calmed down first, but he's physically unharmed."

Arthur hung up, and then got Alfred to his home, where he struggled to get everything out of the car, before he grabbed Alfred, and put him on his back again, the man practically dead weight, though as Arthur closed the door and brought everything to the den, Alfred's grip on him tightened a little bit.

Arthur sat him down on the couch, his pets seeming confused by the new set up, only one day after they had gotten there, but Alfred's whimpers brought the dog close to him, the animal seeming to sympathize with him.

After ensuring that Alfred knew he was right around the corner, Arthur grabbed out his air mattress, and inflated it for Alfred, covering it with blankets and pillows, and while that went off, he went and ordered some food for them, and then turned on the TV, before he helped Alfred onto the mattress, hugging him from behind, Cinnamon sitting beside them both, Alfred quiet and upset.

"Matthew's okay." Arthur felt compelled to say, but Alfred didn't perk up at the mention of his name. Alfred felt lifeless, aimless, leaning against Arthur but not seeming to be aware of anything. "Alfred, can you focus on me?" He asked him, but Alfred didn't reply, or look at him. "Well, that's alright. Food will be here soon, I'll feed you then…My ringer's on, I'll be waiting for Francis to call….me…"

Arthur paused. "I got a call from Matthew…on Saturday." He turned to Alfred, who was curling up on himself in his sorrow. "That was you, wasn't it?" He asked, but didn't expect an explanation. "Alfred…I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry…" Arthur started to stroke his back, and slowly, Alfred's face crumpled back into tears, and he sobbed, gripping Arthur tightly. "You're in bad shape… I'm so sorry… I'll do whatever I can to help you."

Alfred finally seemed to look at him, whimpering a bit, and nodding slowly, letting Arthur comfort him. "I'm sorry." Arthur said firmly. "I will make it right, I promise…you're safe, and you're not alone. Go to sleep, I'll wake you up when food arrives."

And the younger man did that, seeming unwilling to let Arthur go even in his sleep after he heard the confirmation that Arthur wouldn't abandon him.

XXXXX

Alfred's sleep was different than when he had seen it in the office. Now, it was fitful, he was talking nonsensically, he was thrashing and moaning in pain- he was having nightmares, and Arthur could only hold him and try and reassure the man that all was well and he wasn't alone.

Alfred seemed volatile and confused, and Arthur was partially convinced that the poor man was having hallucinations of some sort, but he did his best to keep him calm, waiting for food, and waiting to hear from Francis.

Finally, finally, food arrived, and Arthur told Alfred to wake up, and once they were both on their feet, the younger man shuffled with him to the door. Arthur paid for the food in cash, telling him to keep the change, and taking the food back to the mattress, sitting Alfred down once again and asking him what he wanted to eat. When he didn't get a verbal answer, he opened all the containers, and asked Alfred to point.

The man pointed to the burger, and after Arthur situated him on his lap, he made smaller bites with a knife, and started to try and feed Alfred. The American was looking spaced out, but accepted Arthur's food offerings dully, occasionally getting fed a chip instead of a bite of burger.

Arthur hadn't even started to eat when he finally got a call from Francis. He answered it, telling him to wait as he laid Alfred back down. "Alright, Francis. How are things going?" Arthur asked, plainly, stroking Alfred's back reassuringly.

"Matthew wants to have your phone on speaker." Francis relayed the information quickly; Matthew's voice muffled in the background.

"Alright, put yours on too, I'd like to hear him as well." Arthur said, before he pressed the button. "Can you hear me?" He said, setting the phone down by Alfred and rubbing his temples.

"Yes, we can hear you, Arthur." Francis said.

"Is Alfred okay?" Matthew's panicked voice was soon overpowering Francis' though. "God, no, of course not, he's missed 4 doses of his meds… shit…"

"Matthew, Matthew." Arthur said firmly. "I've just gotten him to eat something- what does he need to take. I wasn't sure, but I saw a lot of the bottles had his name on them, so I raided the cabinet. First step is, get him back on track." Arthur looked to Alfred. "I know he mentioned to me he likes being told what's going on, even when he might not understand it- so Alfred, just so you know, I'm going to give you your medicines, and hopefully you'll start to feel better again." He stroked his back. "Okay? Can you nod for me?"

Alfred blinked, and nodded slowly, curling up and gripping Arthur's shirt.

"He nodded, alright. What medication do I need to give to him?" Arthur asked, taking out his bag of medication. Matthew quickly fired off a whole bunch of names in frantic muttering, but Francis forced him to slow down, and repeat.

"…Alright." Arthur nodded, holding about 5 bottles in his hands. "Do you want me to give them to him now?"

"Yes." Matthew said immediately. "Please, make sure he drinks a lot of water with them…"

Arthur followed his instructions, slowly making sure Alfred had all his medication, and then told Matthew that he had taken them.

"Thank you for knowing to get him." Matthew said, jittery. "Alfred, I'm so sorry- I'm so sorry, but I'm sure Arthur will take good care of you until I can get out of the hospital, right?"

Alfred looked from the phone, to Arthur. "…kay." He mumbled, and Matthew sighed in relief.

"Good- I promise, you're in good hands, okay? I hope to come get you soon, alright?"

Alfred's attention had fallen, and Arthur was sure to tell Matthew that.

"That's alright." Matthew said, upset. "He missed a lot of medication, and it tends to make him fall apart when that happens. When I'm at home I can remind him to take them, and if all is right he remembers to do it himself. However, if I went missing like that, he probably panicked- please- just... keep him company. I hope I won't be here long…Alfred's probably not in any shape to be in a hospital…"

"Matthew, Matthew, please, calm down." Arthur said, instantly. "Alfred will be fine here, give Francis all the information you need me to have- I will look after Alfred for now. You got in a car wreck. You need to let _yourself_ heal, for goodness sake."

Matthew sounded upset still, but Francis piped up. "Matthew, dear, Arthur is right. You aren't fit to care for Alfred right now because you need to care for yourself. There's nothing bad about that, it just means you have to take a step back and give your body time to heal- you're injured, and you won't be of much help to Alfred like this."

Arthur had to agree, annoyed as he was by the Frenchie's speech, remarkably similar to the one he told Arthur when they were freshmen in college. However, Matthew was consoled, and they hung up, leaving Alfred alone with Arthur once more.

"Well, I'm going to be cleaning up, and then I'll set up a movie we can watch together- you look zoned out, Alfred." Arthur said jokingly, even as Alfred lay still, holding onto Arthur's shirt like a child clinging to a blanket.

And things got on accordingly, Alfred more than happy to curl up with Arthur and sleep when the time came for that.

Arthur slept with him on the air mattress, the feeling warm and foreign, and Alfred's sleep seemed to finally settle down and stopped beating the young man up.

XXXXX

The next morning was less hard. He woke up with blue eyes in his face, but instead of Francis, who had always slept with his back to him or just out of his reach, this pair was as close as they could get, weak hands trying to pull a body against Arthur's chest.

Arthur blinked sleep out of his eyes, and recognized the person as Alfred, who was still looking horribly tired, and he felt his dog laying by them at the foot of the mattress. Arthur didn't say anything, feeling Alfred's hands trying to find a way to get him closer to the older man. Without waking him up, Arthur laid Alfred's head against his chest, and held him there. The young man was more than happy to settle back down and fall back asleep- he had just needed some reassurance in the early morning.

He released a statement giving Monday off for employees, stating that he was sorry, but he was personally sick. He set his phone back down, and stroked Alfred's blonde hair. It looked like gold, still. The young man breathed slowly, the sounds calming down from yesterday afternoon. Hesitantly, Arthur picked up the technology once more, and he texted Francis that Alfred seemed to be okay this morning, and asked if there was something Alfred needed that morning.

The response was that Matthew was up and worried, he hadn't been able to sleep well, and Francis wasn't entirely sure what to do.

"I might bring Alfred by, just so he can lay eyes on him, that might be a help." Arthur mentioned. "Whenever Alfred wakes up, of course."

Francis texted back quickly, "That might be a good idea, since Matthew is just worried about him. But, how is he, truly?"

Arthur hesitated, before typing. "Well… He's in bad shape. He's barely said anything to me, but that might change today- I'll keep you updated on that."

And with that, Arthur set down his phone once again.

Alfred was so small; or at least, that's what he felt like, at times like this. The young man's frame was the opposite, but so much of the last 5 years of his life had been spent in a hospital bed that he had wasted away- his body as well as his mind. And now, that young man was on top of Arthur, fast asleep and holding his nightshirt, his head nestled into the crook of Arthur's shoulder.

Arthur turned on the TV, and watched it to let Alfred have more time to rest.

XXXXX

He didn't really notice when Alfred woke up, but after some time he realized that the man was watching him sleepily, not looking willing to move.

"Hi Alfred, you awake then?" He asked, smiling at him. "Is it okay if I sit up, I'd like some breakfast, wouldn't you?"

Alfred nodded, adjusting his grip on Arthur as the older man sat up, and then stood up. He hummed, sensing that Alfred didn't want to let go of him. "Can you hold the back of my shirt? I need to get us food, and give you your medication."

Alfred seemed amicable to this, not seeming to care what happened as long as he stayed close to Arthur. The Brit started talking, just talking, and trying to prompt Alfred into doing the same. He started to mention his roommates from college, their plan to meet up in accordance with how Arthur won their bet.

"What…bet…?" Alfred asked slowly, and Arthur gathered everything to get him fed before he sat them both down.

"We made a bet at the start of our last year of college- who would and wouldn't be married when we next all talked to each other within the first 10 years since the start of college. This year marks the anniversary of that, so it was our last chance to talk about how our bet turned out. We all had the bets written down, so there could be no cheating." Arthur snickered.

"And you…?" Alfred tentatively asked.

"I'm single, my dear." He mentioned, with a sigh. "We made the bet not yet a year after Francis dumped me- and most of that summer had been spent crying and eating ice cream."

"Single?" Alfred seemed boggled by this, his grip tightening on him. "You…?"

Arthur nodded affirmatively. "I am, and I have been since then. So, they won that- but I got Natalia, Gilbert, and Lukas' all-correctly placed in their categories. Vlad was a toss out score, since his parents abruptly died in Romania two weeks before graduation, and he needed to leave and assume care for his then-baby brother."

Alfred was fixated on the fact he was single, and Arthur blushed when he heard Alfred's mutterings. "But…nice…so nice…hnn…why…?"

He didn't comment, only encouraging Alfred to open his mouth so he could get some cereal in his system, spooning him breakfast in order to give him his medication. Alfred was stunned, and more than willing to have all of this done to him as he had his attention elsewhere.

"Well, Alfred, you never asked me if I was dating anyone, I suppose now you know." He winked at him. "Matthew certainly knows that no, I'm not in a relationship and I haven't been in a long time."

Alfred looked at him, blue eyes foggy, but something else was there now, too, but the American didn't speak, the words simply not coming to him.

"Anyway, if you're up to it, Matthew is worried about you, and I was thinking we could at least go see him and let him make sure nothing happened to you. Love is incredibly irrational at times."

Alfred looked at him again, and fiddled with something, before he nodded, accepting the idea. "Yeah…love." He mumbled. "What happened…to?" He asked in confusion, his sentence about his brother's accident not complete, but Arthur got the idea anyway.

"According to what I heard from Francis, he fell asleep at the wheel and drove out into traffic." Arthur sighed. "He's fine, they had to go through a few surgeries, and he was kept in an induced coma in order to not let him fall into shock from all the harm to his internal organs, or something. I'm no doctor. However, he woke up yesterday, an hour or so after I brought you here, and he's apparently still worried sick. He apologized a good few times over the phone- I don't suppose if you noticed, but it was on speakerphone."

Alfred shook his head, fidgeting with his hands, and Arthur stood up. "I'm going to put dishes away. Cinnamon is at your feet, I'm not sure if you've noticed her, but she's been keeping you company all night." With that, the man looked under the table, and his eyes lit up at the sight of a dog, an easy smile coming on his face as he pushed back his chair and sat with her, slowly petting her and making soft happy noises at her. The dog looked entirely happy with the situation, more than happy to be still for Alfred's shaking hands.

He put away his breakfast dishes, and put out the cat and dog food once again, refilling their water bowls. Kiki showed up at her breakfast dish, and Arthur gladly pet the cute black cat, whispering that they had both been outdone to her even as she purred loudly at him.

With that, he wandered back out to the kitchen, where Alfred was sprawled on the floor, smiling much wider as Cinnamon had rolled over for him, and let him pet her belly.

"I see you like her a fair bit." Arthur joked, and Alfred nodded slowly, seeming soothed.

"Dogs don't hurt you…they don't leave you…" He mumbled, a coherent sentence actually being formed for the first time since he had seen him last on Friday.

"I agree." Arthur smiled. "They love you no matter what, which was precisely why I wanted a dog."

Alfred's movements on her belly were slow, but precise. Cinnamon just seemed happy for the attention she was getting.

"What's…her name…?" Alfred asked, trying to focus and remember.

"Cinnamon." Arthur smiled as he sat with him, the American mumbling it and telling the dog what a good girl she was.

"Do you want to go see your brother?" Arthur posed the question, and Alfred looked at him, before nodding.

"Matt's…worried…right?" He asked, sounding vaguely scared.

"He's worried sick." Arthur said reassuringly. "He's so worried, that Francis was concerned he would have to sit on top of him to make sure he didn't try and come see you here." He relayed the joke, and Alfred smiled a bit at it, though he mostly just seemed relieved.

"It must have been scary." Arthur mentioned, and Alfred had to nod.

"It was…I…I think…" He paused, trying to figure out how to say it. "I called you…"

"I thought it was a butt dial." He admitted. "I didn't hear anything in the voicemail."

Alfred bit his lip, and nodded. "That's…okay…"

"No, it's not." He said firmly. "If you ever need my help, you _should_ be able to call me." He nodded firmly. "But, you have to say something to let me know you need me- At least tell me who is calling, then I can call you back and get to know more."

The American nodded, and reached for Arthur's hand, smiling slowly once again when the Brit took it and squeezed it. "Thank you…Arthur…" He mumbled.

"I'm going to stand you up now, alright?" With a nod, the two stood, and Alfred agreed to go see Matthew.


	6. Chapter 6

The drive was easy enough, and Alfred was easily shepherded into the hospital, though he gripped Arthur with fright at all the loud noises going on around him, unstable and unhappy with all the stimulus the place was providing him. Arthur remained calm, steering him to the front desk with ease, saying they were there to see Matthew Williams, and this was his brother, who needed an escort to get around.

The nurses seemed to notice how distressed Alfred was, the younger man tightly clinging to Arthur for support. They agreed to let them through, and Arthur calmly directed Alfred to come with the nurses, heading up to Matthew's room.

They seemed to walk forever, but the issue might have been that Alfred was slowing down, seeming to drag his heels into the ground in fear and upset. Every time that happened, Arthur would offer to pick him up- and eventually Alfred agreed, burying his face in Arthur's neck while the nurses led them to Matthew's room.

Matthew was propped up in bed, and Francis was talking quietly to him, when Arthur arrived with Alfred in tow on his back.

"Alfred!" Matthew said quickly when he saw the pair walk in. "Are you okay?"

The statement was particularly ironic, seeing as poor Matthew's face was cut and bruised to shit, clearly damaged by broken glass. A few cuts had bandages on them still, he reckoned by how much he was covered. His glasses were gone, and Arthur guessed that they were what caused the gashes on his cheeks.

The man slowly peeked out from Arthur's shoulder, and nodded, shaking as Arthur set him down to stand beside him. "Sorry…Matt…" He mumbled, blue eyes downcast, and Arthur wrapped his arm around him.

"Alfred, you don't have to apologize." Matthew started easily, "I'm sorry, I left you…" He gestured for his brother to come over to him, and Arthur relayed the information, but Alfred remained frozen, and Arthur sighed.

"Matthew, he's been really in and out of focus." Arthur explained, picking Alfred up and taking him to the bed, sitting beside him as Alfred came back to life and examined Matthew, looking sad.

The hospitalized twin nodded. "It's the medication- going on and off it isn't good for him, and missing 4 doses is _really_ bad for him- He's probably, unfortunately, had hallucinations and nightmares…it'll be a few days before his medication can even really get back in his system and he'll start being able to think like himself."

Arthur nodded in understanding, but he felt Alfred tense up.

"Matthew, perhaps you shouldn't talk about it like that." He phrased, gently hugging Alfred to reassure him. "I think Alfred here understands more than you know."

Matthew looked confusedly at the two of them, and spoke again. "Arthur, he doesn't understand it- his mind…he's not able to…"

Arthur grit his teeth at this, feeling Alfred start to shake a bit. "Matthew, he can still _hear_ you, and even if it doesn't make sense, he still picks up the general gist of it all." He squeezed Alfred tighter. "He's growing upset."

Matthew looked closer, confused, and saw with a second examination, Alfred looked tenser, gripping Arthur tighter and struggling more with his emotions than he usually did. "Alfred?" He mumbled, trying to see how his twin reacted.

He got a flash of upset blue eyes meeting his for a second, before they darted away, the man gripping Arthur tighter.

Matthew essentially froze. "You can hear me…I…" He gripped his head, looking woozy and struck by terror. "Oh… I." He gasped, and Francis jumped into action, trying to regain his attention and make him breathe better, but Matthew only seemed to be able to take tiny little breaths, starting to hyperventilate as his heart pounded, the monitor beating irratically.

Alfred seemed to panic as well, losing his grip on Arthur and clawing his forehead, until Arthur gripped his hands and forced him to stop, but Alfred was keening loudly, his negative reaction to Matthew's distress clear-which of course, only made Matthew worse.

Nurses came in, and told Alfred if he were going to react like that, he would have to leave. When Alfred couldn't stop himself from making his upset noises, in fact, only getting louder and more distressed, they said that he had to go- and they were ready to force him despite Arthur's yells to stop it. "You're causing a horrible disturbance! People are trying to heal here!" The nurse screaming at Alfred looked tired, and Arthur guessed she had been working a little too long, but that didn't excuse it in the slightest. "Either stop it or get out!"

Alfred had crumped, crying louder as he tried to make himself small, and Arthur stepped in, telling the security to back off for half a second, they were making it so much worse for Alfred because they were _scaring_ _him_ half to death.

Security didn't back off, surrounding the two of them, and maintaining the nurse's and doctor's statements of needing to leave- they were causing the patient distress. Arthur barked at them to let him carry Alfred, and even though they agreed, they still enveloped the two from Matthew's vision, the two cornered by the door.

Arthur made Alfred look at him, gently telling him it would be okay, he wasn't in trouble, but Arthur was going to pick him up now. Hoisting the large, shaking man into his arms, he barked at the nurses and asked for some sympathy, and some sense. "Clearly, you yelling at him doesn't help anything." He reminded her sharply, and told Alfred they were going back to Arthur's home in a whisper. "We'll leave, but I'm positive that Matthew will be upset." He muttered, adjusting his grip on Alfred slightly before he started to walk, Alfred hiding his face in Arthur's shirt.

Other nurses were trying to tend to Matthew, but he seemed to only grow angrier when he saw Alfred and Arthur being escorted out by security. He couldn't speak, needing an oxygen mask for the moment, but his enraged groans and grunts as he struggled with the nurses and Francis, trying to plead with them to let the brothers' stick together, but his words fell on deaf ears.

Arthur was forced to walk all the way out of the hospital, Alfred's keens becoming whimpers and sobs, shaking and uncertain. The Brit gently stroked his back, saying that it would be okay, that he hadn't deserved that. "They were right assholes… We'll call Francis in the car, it's okay, Alfred, shhh…" He hugged him tight, walking to the car as Alfred cried into his shirt.

They left the hospital; Alfred curled in a ball of self-hatred and sorrow in Arthur's passenger seat, blue eyes looking down at the floor with no aim.

"Alfred…" He mumbled, gently stroking his back. "It'll be alright."

And then he started driving them back to his home, completely unsure of how to move forward in conversation.

XXXXX

That night was uneventful, Alfred had grown quiet again, and had been petting Cinnamon on the air mattress in Arthur's den since they had gotten back.

Arthur had gotten them all food, putting out the pet food before he sat down to feed Alfred and give him his medication. The young man did it all without complaint, blue eyes dark and focused, and yet, not.

Alfred didn't look there, but there was a focus that wasn't there before. Not for paying Arthur any mind, it seemed, but on something else. He had retracted himself into his mind, and it was all Arthur could do to sit with him and try and comfort him.

The young man didn't lean on him, he didn't try and grab Arthur, he didn't make any noise, he didn't look at Arthur, only at the floor. He even retracted the hand that had been petting Cinnamon, and curled up on himself, staring inwardly.

Something was wrong, and Arthur didn't know what to do.

"Alfred, please…" Arthur was worried, and he could only reach out to Alfred, but he didn't want to touch him without his permission. "That wasn't your fault."

"It was." Alfred mumbled. "It always is."

"Alfred, don't say that." He reached out to him suddenly, gripping Arthur tightly. "It's not your fault that those nurses were assholes! You…you're not to blame for them."

"Kicked out…. 'Cause coul'n't control…"

"And that's because they were assholes! You're not to blame for all of this! You, Alfred, are much better than them! Alfred…" Arthur had grabbed him, and was holding him by his shoulders.

"Matthew does everything he can for you because he loves you dearly. Surely…surely his love overpowers them?"

Alfred looked at him slowly, his face settled in quiet defeat. "You…do all the same as Matt…" He mumbled, quiet. "But you…no, you…" Tears were dripping down his face. "You all… _pity_ …me…" He smiled in his sorrow, the word _pity_ filled with so much disgust, burrowing his face into his arms and trying to hide his tears.

"That's…" Arthur mumbled, unsure of what he should say here. "That's not true, Alfred…" He sighed, rubbing his temples. "I don't think it's appropriate to tell you…but I do…. I _do_ love you."

Alfred's head jerked up in disbelief, shocked by the reveal.

Arthur only smiled at him, self-deprecating. "Yeah. It's almost _certainly_ not appropriate, isn't it?" He laughed a bit at himself. "I first saw you in Matthew's car, back before you even met me now that we're both older, and I thought you were one of the most handsome people I'd ever seen." He nodded. "I wanted to get to know you, but Francis told me to back off. When I found out…what happened to you, I immediately wanted to try and put everything back together. I hurt you when we were younger. I didn't mean to, I had lashed out because I was angry at everything _I_ had become…" He hiccupped. "You didn't deserve any of this life, you're _good_ and _kind_ , and I hated myself for…I don't know, making everything so hard for you. You're not _ruined_ , no, that would be terribly unkind for me to say about you. But you're still hurting, and I want to help you stop hurting." His throat closed up, upset. " _Please_ don't do anything stupid, I want to see you smile and be happy."

Alfred was staring at him as though Arthur had grown a second head, and Arthur nodded, laughing again. "Please…please don't think I only pity you…I…I love you, more than I should, more than what's appropriate."

A new wave of tears started to come out of Alfred, and Arthur only gathered him close, trying to help him stop crying, but unlike before, this time Alfred gripped at him and tried to get as close as possible as he could once more, and Arthur assisted him, helping Alfred onto his lap and squeezing him in a deep hug.

"Love too." Alfred said, almost immediately, the sounds broken and grammatically incorrect. "Love too…" And when Arthur pulled away, Alfred immediately crossed the distance between them; kissing Arthur fervently, needing comfort and reassurance that all of this was real, and Arthur gave him what he wanted of him.

"I won't go further than that right now." Arthur said firmly as Alfred attempted to remove his shirt. "You're not speaking in full sentences- whenever we do… _this_ , I want to know you're okay, and it's hard to know that when 2 minutes ago you weren't talking to me at all." He squeezed him tighter. "But, I _will_ cuddle, alright? Can we agree to stop here for now?"

Alfred nodded, teary-eyed and his lips wobbling, but allowed Arthur to lie down beside him and reassure him, the two face to face with Arthur trying to remind him that he was wonderful and deserved the world until Alfred fell into a far more peaceful sleep than when he first came to Arthur's home, Cinnamon resting at their feet once more.

XXXXX

When he woke up, Alfred was still sleeping, his grip like iron on the older man.

Arthur didn't have the heart to push the American away, not when he finally seemed to be having a good dream, so he grabbed the remote and turned on the TV quietly, watching the morning news and getting out his phone to check the time- it was pretty early- Alfred and him had fallen asleep at 6 last night, so he didn't mind the 5 AM wake up all that much.

 _However_ , as the clock ticked past 5:30, he sighed, knowing fully well that he did have to go to work today, so he _had_ to get up. Alfred's face was adorable, his hair slightly ruffled, and he was even drooling lightly. He didn't snore, which was a blessing. Arthur resolved on gently poking Alfred, sitting up and trying to tell him they had to move.

The man sleepily groaned, but allowed Arthur up, curling back up in the bed before Alfred abruptly woke up, staring at Arthur in shock as his breathing picked up. "Matt? Matt?!" He was saying and Arthur quickly tried to calm him down, sighing softly. "Matt!" He was shouting now. "Where!? MATT!"

"Alfred, _Alfred_ , you're at my house, remember?" He was calm, but Alfred kept calling for Matthew, terrified of what was around him, hyperventilating and looking all around him in terror.

Then it hit Arthur, Alfred _couldn't_ see him- he was hallucinating or dreaming, or something else along those lines. Arthur sat down, and pulled the man close to him, even as Alfred struggled with him, rubbing his back in an attempt to make him calm down.

"Alfred." Arthur said in his ear. "It's Arthur, you're at my house, remember? Matthew is in the hospital."

"H-hospital…?" Alfred gasped, his entire body shaking and shivering, and he gripped Arthur suddenly, clearly trying to keep a grip on himself as well.

"Yes- he's alright, but I brought you to my home so you wouldn't be left alone." Arthur squeezed him tighter. "I'm sorry for waking you up, I need to get ready for work." He gently pet Alfred's hair, before letting him go. "Cinnamon seems to want to keep you company though." The dog started wagging her tail, and Alfred seemed mostly appeased with this knowledge.

Arthur got up and started getting his things together, getting dressed and getting Alfred an outfit out as well, setting it down on the couch as he prepared him some breakfast, before taking it over along with his medication.

"Sorry for freaking out…" Alfred mumbled as Arthur came back over in his work clothes, his focus still on Cinnamon.

"It's fine." Arthur smiled. "Do you want to feed yourself or would you rather I do it?"

Alfred looked at him, before taking the bowl of oatmeal from Arthur along with the spoon, seeming eager to try it for himself, his hands shaking slightly as he spooned himself food and worked on getting it to his mouth. Meanwhile, Arthur checked his phone for messages from Francis or Matthew, not entirely certain of what path to take. Matthew was almost certainly still in the hospital; meaning…Francis would be there with him, most likely.

Alfred was finished with his oatmeal quickly, and Arthur then doled out his medication, handing him a cup of water to take with it, and the younger man did just that, still rubbing sleep out of his wonderfully blue eyes.

Arthur felt a bit sad- did Alfred remember what he had said last night? His heart dropped to his stomach, his throat felt choked up. Did Alfred remember, or had that information gone right out of him?

He didn't know, and he wasn't yet sure if he wanted to know- did Alfred actually return his feelings, like he said last night, or had it been the product of a tired, brain damaged mind?

"Well, we need to get you dressed." Arthur said, nodding. "Do you mind undressing?" He asked, grabbing the things he had laid out for Alfred, the man doing as he was told without complaint.

Arthur soon had Alfred all ready to go, and he gestured for him to follow, Alfred smiling at him a bit more than he had yesterday. It was too soon to start jumping to conclusions about how much Alfred could remember- he would just have to ask. Preferably when they were at the office.

When they got there, Arthur lead Alfred into his office, and got to work, trying to figure out where precisely the frog was by texting him, asking about Matthew.

Meanwhile, Alfred sat on Arthur's couch, before noticing the file box and getting back to work, which was remarkable.

Arthur stared at him for a bit, his heart thumping in his chest erratically. "Alright then." He mumbled, looking at his phone quietly. "Well."

"Well what?" Alfred asked curiously, looking to Arthur from his files.

The businessman couldn't well say anything, but he went flush. "Do you remember last night…?" He asked, tentatively.

Alfred looked at him, and nodded, smiling happily. "Yes…" He mumbled, feeling his lips and looking dreamy. "You're a good kisser, Arthur…"

Arthur went full flush, before he nodded, smiling back at Alfred. "I'm glad, I was worried…" He watched as Alfred went right on back to doing what he was supposed to, his eyes still foggy, but much happier than yesterday. A relationship wasn't going to cure Alfred- no, of course not. But, it was always a nice confidence booster, Arthur knew, especially since Alfred seemed to have trouble with thinking himself a burden.

It was hard to deal with that, and it was easier to believe that he wasn't being a burden or just being pitied when he knew Arthur liked him _romantically_. Not that they _were_ in a relationship, and Arthur certainly wasn't going to have sex with him until he was positive that Alfred was capable of that sense of self necessary to give consent. But it was nice, it was nice to hear that someone liked you, and you were liked back.

And that was only if he counted Alfred's desperate cries of "Love too" as having his romantic feelings _returned_ , which he probably did, since Alfred had been a mess at that point, and Arthur wasn't picky and a sucker for romance.

However, there was no texts from Francis, Arthur noticed in annoyance. He called him, and left him an irate voicemail about at least letting him have a status update on Matthew and himself.

Other employee's rolled in, and the day started, Alfred happily doing the job Arthur set aside for him, and Arthur grumbling about getting the quarter's reports done, typing loudly in his irritation at the Frenchmen.

The day went on, and Alfred grew hungry, and when it came time for lunch he whisked them to a drive through and ordered something he figured Alfred would like along with his usual order, and then the pair was off again.

"Seem…upset." Alfred pointed out, confused and concerned.

"I am- though not at you, love." Arthur leaned over to kiss him while they were stuck at a red light. "I'm wondering why my business partner hasn't been responding to me- he is with your brother."

"…Francis?" Alfred asked, seeming to attempt to place the name, and Arthur agreed.

The Brit sighed. "Yes, the horrible Frenchmen you see around. He is my business partner. He's quite taken with Matthew."

Alfred looked surprised, and coughed. "Virgin." Alfred muttered, and Arthur snickered.

"Yes, yes, Francis does have a thing for virgins, and I had guessed as well. Matthew comes off as the naturally naïve type, doesn't he."

Alfred only gave him a long-suffering look. "Yes." The man agreed in a word, though his expression communicated sexual frustration as well as personal frustration with the fact his brother was, plainly put, _vanilla_.

"Francis is also rather romantic." Arthur decided to say, shrugging. "He was with me."

"Dated…" Alfred recalled slowly, and Arthur nodded.

"He broke up with me, I've been single since." He agreed. "I told you about some of that, yes?"

The American nodded, humming, before his eyes lit up again. "Punched...?" He asked, and Arthur frowned.

"No, you can't punch Francis." But Alfred only shook his head at Arthur's words, and repeated the word, pointing to Arthur. "Did _I_ punch him…?"

He thought back, and then remembered, glaring at Alfred half-heartedly, the American grinning sheepishly. "I thought you were asleep then, rascal." Alfred shook his head, before making a motion with his hand, obviously wanting some explanation. "He and I shared the couch." He muttered. "Asshole gets very touchy-feely in the bed, and I punched him when we woke up cuddling. You don't break my heart but still get the goods." He muttered in a sort of malevolent satisfaction.

Alfred nodded, leaning on the window a bit. "Oh…"

"Mmhm." Arthur agreed with him, driving on back to the office with gusto as the light changed to green.

XXXXX

Alfred was done for a long while, sitting on the couch before he realized Arthur was still going to work, and then sitting on the floor by his desk in an attempt to sit closer. Arthur, who was one to indulge him, picked him up and sat him on his lap, letting Alfred hug him and rest his head on the crook of his neck.

He eventually, thankfully, got a call from Francis. "Took you long enough." Arthur muttered, and Francis sighed into the phone.

"Good to talk with you to." Francis' voice said the exact opposite of what he was saying, and Arthur snickered. "How is Alfred?"

"He's been okay. Last night was tough, but he snapped out of his funk." Arthur relayed, leaving out the bit where they kissed and Alfred tried to have sex with him.

Francis sighed into the phone. "Alright, Matthew, you heard that, yes?" He said, and Matthew agreed. "Matthew here wants to sue the hospital."

"He should at least press charges for inappropriate conduct." Arthur agreed. "Alfred is brain damaged, the nurse terrified him and preyed upon what he couldn't help."

"Thank you for agreeing with me, Arthur." Matthew said, bright. "Francis doesn't think it's smart."

"It's not smart if you intend to stay there." Arthur agreed with his best friend on that front. "More like…build the case and go through with it once you've been released or put into another hospital."

Matthew sighed, and Francis thanked him then, for showing Matthew some reason.

"Is he alright…?" Matthew asked. "We got cut off yesterday…how did he hold up?"

"He was extremely upset." Arthur explained. "He's asleep right now. But today, though he's happier, I've been getting small sentences and one word answers."

"And you've been giving him the medication?" Matthew confirmed, and Arthur made a noise of agreement.

The Brit went on to say about how well Alfred had been behaving, save for a few moments, his hand rubbing circles on the man's back. "Either way, what is the prognosis with Matthew, Francis?"

"They're still keeping him here- he's to be moved out of ICU today, though." Francis revealed, sighing. "His breathing's evening out, they are worried about his lungs and heart, wondering why he had a hard time breathing when Alfred got kicked out."

"Like that's a question." Arthur muttered, and Francis snorted in agreement.

His friend hummed. "It is worrying that it went on longer than a panic attack, and it was more physically based- with his heart beating irregularly and such. We didn't mention it yesterday- didn't have time. Matthew's injuries include a moderate to severe concussion, some broken and fractured ribs on his left side, and likely some sort of neck and back damage that we can't yet tell, since he's been in bed since the accident."

"They don't think he's paralyzed?" Arthur asked, and Francis disagreed.

"No- he's certainly not, he's able to move around just fine. It's more like he's going to have a lot of back and neck pain, and he might have gotten his discs out of alignment."

Arthur rubbed his temples. "Alright, that's a good thing, then." He tried to look on the bright side. "It could have been worse- you're alive, you're not paralyzed. Yeah, you have a concussion, but…" He froze, realizing that the ending to that statement was _but you're not brain damaged._ "But, you're alive. You were T-boned, correct?" He changed the topic quickly.

"Ah, yes…they only think it's not worse because I was unconscious at the wheel before the impact…" Matthew admitted quietly. "They said had I been awake, the force dealt to my car probably would have killed me."

Arthur agreed with an affirmative hum. "Well, the office is busy, we're actually getting work done when you're not around, Francis." He teased slightly, looking down to notice Alfred's breathing evening out, his eyes closed. "Ah, my little helper fell asleep." He mumbled. "I do have to keep working, Francis, good luck Matthew, I hope to hear soon that you're allowed to go home and back to work."

He wished them luck, and then hung up, returning to his boring work schedule, Alfred completely asleep on his lap.

XXXXX

Day in, day out- Arthur got into a steady schedule with Alfred, and that was when Alfred seemed to excel. The man seemed honestly happy as Arthur got him back into his flow, and progress started to be made again. Matthew gave Arthur the therapy and rehab schedule when it became clear that he wouldn't be out in a week's time.

Alfred started to steal kisses from Arthur, making the older man flush and sigh, though it was hard to get mad at him in the long run when it made him so happy.

Arthur's life grew busy as well- Gilbert wanted to come by at some point and talk with him, and Roderich, Elizabeta, as well- they had been Gilbert's friends in high school, and it was nice to know they had been thinking of him. Natalia was making plans to come by as well, but her wife wasn't precisely able to come from Europe- running a business wasn't easy, Natalia revealed.

He had given them his address if they were in the area and they wanted to stop by though.

The American was starting new forms of rehab, since he was getting on with mastering old skills- such as knowing basic events for the week, and keeping track of what day it was. Arthur insisted that he relearn to write so that Alfred could start keeping track of his emotions and needs better, and the therapist agreed that it would be a nice thing for Alfred to be able to do.

And so, Arthur forced Alfred to practice by writing him "letters" every few days, giving him time to respond and work on his penmanship, also giving Alfred opportunities to read- though that skill was slow and clunky, the man needing to read aloud in order to understand what things meant on a page.

Matthew was still in the hospital, as far as they knew, since Francis seemed to become rather sparse with information.

His charge did worry about that, but Arthur reassured him that it was probably that they were busy themselves, and the younger man was appeased by that. However, Arthur felt the need to call them and let them know that Alfred was worried by it all, even if it went straight to voicemail.

His pets were adjusting well to having Alfred and Arthur around to love on. Arthur enjoyed quiet nights were Alfred would go into the backyard and play fetch with Cinnamon, who was always patient with him, while Arthur sat on a yard chair and let Kiki explore a bit, happy when the cat returned to his side, rubbing his leg affectionately until the older man picked her up and pet her gently.

Alfred wound up happy though, and he approached Arthur one Friday night while they were doing their usual night activity of watching a movie on Arthur's couch, the younger man fidgeting with something. "Uhm…Arthur?" He asked slowly, his face flushed red.

"Yes, Alfred?" Arthur looked up to him with a smile, and Alfred flushed a bit more.

"I…I was wondering." He swallowed a bit. "Would…would you go out with me?" He asked, biting his lip. "I…I really, _really_ like you…more than I've liked anyone else before…and…I want to be with you- always."

Arthur smiled at him as his heart ballooned with love and affection, and the older man pulled him down onto the couch, kissing him sweetly before he gave him his answer. "Yes, I would love to date you, Alfred- I already told you, I love you, so very, very much."

The man nodded tearfully, hugging Arthur tighter as he kissed him passionately, the two deeply in love and it showed, butterflies in Arthur's stomach, the kisses becoming deeper and more intimate, and Arthur eventually pushed Alfred down onto his back, the man eager to do whatever it was that Arthur wanted, wrapping his arms around Arthur's neck and smiling breathlessly when he pulled away.

It was probably a good thing that they stopped, since it wouldn't be a good idea to sleep with Alfred the first night they dated. But, unfortunately, the doorbell had rung. "Ah, one second." He called, pausing the movie as his dog barked at the door, whining at it. Arthur walked over, muttering about who was bothering him at this hour as he pulled open his door at stared flatly at the disturbance.

"Arthur!" It was a familiar pale face. "Don't look at me like that!" He said, laughing. "I was in the neighborhood!"

"Gilbert?" He exclaimed, before a large smile broke out on his face, and he opened the door wide, Cinnamon too good of a dog to run away, instead sniffing Gilbert and the other visitor- who Arthur had yet to notice. "It's been years, I know we talked on Facebook and Skype, but it's just not the same!"

The albino was rather short fellow, and very easy to just envelop in a hug. He pointed out all the time it was his malnourishment growing up- since he had been on the streets for a long time until a caring police officer picked him up and adopted him, but the damage had been done by then. Gilbert's brother, Ludwig, had fared much better than him in the long run, Arthur only having met the man a few times when Gilbert would bring him by.

He noticed that Gilbert had brought another person with him, and he had assumed it was Ludwig based off how large he was, however, when his gaze trailed upwards, the man froze in place when he realized who was before him, having tagged along with Gilbert.

Awkwardly staring down at him was a familiar pair of green eyes, looking rather bashful and uncertain.

"Hello, Arthur- you've grown up, haven't ye." The accent was irritatingly familiar, _Scottish_ , though it sounded rather sheepish and unsure of itself, _which was grand_ his mind whispered back in his righteous anger, and Arthur stared at him, his smile having broken and become a bitter glare.

" _Alistair._ " Arthur growled his acknowledgement of who this was, his stare becoming flat and angry as he swung back his hand to punch his oldest brother in the face.


	7. Chapter 7

"Arthur, how was I supposed to know you had resolved to never speak to him again?" Gilbert said, horrifically confused as they all sat down, Alistair holding up a bag of frozen peas to his bruised lip- something that Alfred had gotten for him.

"Not just _him_." Arthur growled bitterly. "Him and any single _one_ of those fuckers who left Peter and I with Dad."

Alfred was staring between them, and he went closer to Arthur, distressed by Arthur's anger. "Isn't he your brother, Arthur?" He asked, confused.

"He _is_ , Alfred." The Brit rubbed his temples. "I haven't seen him since I was 11- and good _fucking_ riddance- I don't _need_ brothers who will leave a kid and a baby with a man they _knew_ to be abusive, even after mum died- you lot didn't even go to her funeral, sick bastards." Arthur's lips curled in disgust.

"You don't have much room to talk there." Alistair pointed out. "Didn't you leave Peter with him?"

"No." Arthur muttered, glaring at him for his audacity to assume something like that. "I had him reported anonymously to the police for child abuse. I went to college, and Peter was taken from his custody altogether. I even know whom the adopted parents _are_ \- a gay couple in Sweden, Lukas' relatives. Since then, the fucker's been in jail, _rotting_ until the day the devil comes to collect his spawn."

At least that made him shut up, and Arthur rubbed his temples. "So, what made you finally want to come see me?" He laughed, angry. "I mean, it's not like we've spent more time apart than we have together- oh wait, that's right, I'm 28 now, _meaning_ , it's been…hmm…. lets see, 28 minus 11 is…" He was dragging this out for malicious effect. "17! 17 years of my life having no godly idea where you were or if you were ever going to come back- well, that's a lie! I gave up hope of you coming back for me only a few years after, when I was 15! So, more like, I spent 3 years thinking you _were_ coming back, a year dreaming you would come back, a year crying because you _had abandoned me_ , and the rest of the time building up hatred for you assholes!" He shouted, standing suddenly.

"And now! _Now_ , you show up, now that I've gotten my life into a semblance of something I'm happy with!" He laughed, boggled. "It's almost as though you _like_ seeing me miserable!"

Alfred gripped Arthur's hand, seeing how he was practically unraveling in front of him, the man laughing, and his expression crazed. "Don't you like it? Seeing me unhappy?"

"Arthur, stop it." The younger American man mumbled, squeezing Arthur's hand tighter. "You're angry, and that seems perfectly reasonable given what you're saying, but please, calm down."

"I can't calm down, Alfred." He gasped, his eyes wide as he stared at Alistair. "I spent 17 years of my life thinking this bastard and my other brothers had left me for dead, and he comes back now? Why? I don't get it. I don't. It's been 17 years. Why come back now? Why not when I was still a kid, any of the years I spent contemplating why they had left me in the first place, holding a razor to my wrist and a bottle of pills to my mouth, wondering what stopped me from following mum?"

Alfred squeezed his hand, and kissed his cheek. "I'm glad you didn't do that, because now we met each other…you matter to me, Arthur…please, calm down, stop yelling."

And the anger deflated like a balloon popped inside of him, leaving only bitterness and sorrow in its wake, Arthur gripping Alfred tight, apologizing for yelling, if he had scared him, struggling not to cry in front of that bastard.

Gilbert stared helplessly at Arthur, obviously feeling guilty for all of this, and he stared at Alistair, angry with him, and angry with himself. "You didn't tell me all of that." He glared. "You just said you hadn't seen Arthur in a long time! I thought you meant you didn't know where he lived, not all of… _that_!" Gilbert spat. "You said you just lost his _phone number_!"

Arthur looked at Gilbert, dead-faced. "Gilbert… you…are so…. _gullible._ " He angrily muttered, rubbing his temples as he sat beside Alfred.

The quiet descended upon them, heavy and oppressive with the weight of the past on their shoulders. Arthur felt like a pre-teen once again, his mom dying and his brothers leaving him altogether, his younger brother leaving with them, and Arthur left alone with a baby he would have to care for so he wouldn't die.

Alfred looked to Alistair, and frowned. "Why are you here?" He asked, point-blank. "If what Arthur said is true, then why come?"

Alistair looked upset as well. "It's true- it's all true. We left him and Peter with our mum and Da when I turned 18 and we could leave. It was cruel of us- there's no second-guessing it now, I suppose. I was angry at our mother, having listened to our father's words on Peter and Arthur. They didn't look like Kirkland's- Mum had an affair; she was easy to blame it on, and they were as well. We left thinking her affair would take Arthur and Peter. Mum killed herself, and Da kept them both- moving the two across the pond after her death." He paused, and took in a deep breath.

But… well, we know now that there _wasn't_ an affair. Months after mum's death, when we received what she had left in her will for us, we searched all of the things she had left us, and there were all sorts of notes. There was never an affair. All 6 Kirkland children…they were all from the same parents. But how could we find them? They had moved to America, and as it was, I was the oldest, 19, taking care of other young adults and one kid. We couldn't have gone across the ocean looking for them. And I was so foolish as to not even leave Arthur my number, I was so convinced that the reason our father had been that way was because of mum's infidelity."

Arthur wasn't looking at him. "That's your fault." He muttered. "For believing a lying bastard."

" _I know that, Arthur."_ Alistair said, his voice choked up. "And I wasn't ever able to find where you'd gone- the only reason I found you now was because of _Gilbert_ \- drunk as a skunk last night, he was talking about how he had gotten his best mate's Arthur Kirkland's address. I asked him what he looked like, and he just said, "Arthur- when did ya dye your hair?" and the pale bastard felt up my eyebrows." Arthur snorted lightly, nodding.

"Didn't notice how much taller you are than me, then?" Arthur looked at Gilbert with a raised brow, the albino looking horribly guilty.

Alistair sighed. "And so, I found out where you lived, and I asked if I could come to see you- I had lost your phone number, which was true in itself, since I never asked for it when we were kids."

Arthur looked at the ground, Alfred gripping his hand tightly, and leaning against him gently, nuzzling his neck. "You fucked up, Alistair. You and all of them." Arthur muttered.

"So I don't get to try again?" He stood, angry, putting the frozen bag of peas down in frustration. "I made a mistake, a judgment call! We all got _fucked_ by our asshole of a father, we shouldn't let him continue to fuck up a life that we never had a chance to have together, especially now that he's in prison!"

"Arthur." Alfred murmured, looking up at him. "Every one deserves a second chance." He gestured to himself. "Look at me… I was fucked from the moment Matthew was picked over me. I ruined my own life from that point on. I almost died at 19, and I woke up with a new chance when I was 22- Matthew wanted me around for some bizarre reason or another."

Arthur's throat choked up. "And you, Arthur." Alfred continued. "You did your fair share in ruining my life, when I hallucinate or have nightmares, I _still_ dream of you and Francis mocking me in my freshmen year. I don't begrudge you. I gave you a second chance, because your life was fucked as well."

And then the man gestured to Alistair. "This world is too small, life is too short to embitter someone who knows they fucked up and just wants to try again. You are bound to meet someone again, just as I found you, and Matthew found me."

"Too many reunions." Arthur muttered, rubbing his temples. "I swear to god, from Francis to Matthew and you to Gilbert, and now to Alistair. I swear. I feel like I'm already going to my first college reunion, I'm seeing so many people I hadn't seen in years."

Gilbert was staring at Alfred, back to Arthur, back to Alistair. "Ain't going to lie, you lost me." He admitted, and Arthur shoved him lightly.

"Oh, belt _up_ Gilbert." He mumbled, wiping his eyes of tears. "Fine, I'll allow this to happen…that's fine, I suppose."

Behind him came a cough, and Arthur jumped in shock, screaming at Francis for doing that, throwing the bag of peas that Alistair had left on the table and getting him straight in the face.

Matthew snorted from a wheelchair, waving at Alfred with squinting eyes, mumbling he hadn't gotten his glasses replaced yet.

Francis stood and patted himself down for emphasis, glaring at Arthur with an insult stuck just behind his teeth.

"Ye two- calm down." Alistair's voice broke the tension between the Frenchmen and the Brit, Francis staring at the red head like the man had a second head. "I swear, you act the same as you did when we were kids. I thought you two had a thing for each other? Are ye dating?"

"No, he broke up with me in our junior year of college." Arthur muttered. "This here, he's my current boyfriend, Alfred squeezed him tighter, liking the voicing of his relationship, seeming to glow as Matthew sputtered in surprise.

" _Boyfriend_?" Matthew shouted in shock and disbelief, and Alfred snickered, kissing Arthur's cheek.

"I asked him out before these guys showed up." Alfred admitted. "I've had the hots for him…for a while." He shrugged, kissing Arthur full on as Arthur went flush and stared at Matthew's face in embarrassment.

Alistair was cackling, and Francis blushed as well. "Damnit, Kirkland. Must you _always_ upstage me?" He asked, angry. "I was going to announce that I had asked Matthew out myself a few days ago, and that he and Alfred were moving in with me!" The oldest Kirkland only laughed heartier at Francis' exclamation.

Arthur punched him again, this time in the eye, and Alistair shut up as Arthur growled, essentially telling him- " _don't test my patience"_ with a glare from his poisonous green eyes.

"Well, I think Alfred is _perfectly_ happy staying here." Arthur said archly, the American nodding furiously and gripping Arthur tighter, as Alistair muttered that his baby brother had learned how to punch pretty hard.

Matthew looked ready to say something about how Alfred wasn't ready for that, and Arthur stopped him by pulling Alfred into a deep and passionate kiss, overpowering the American, who eagerly held onto him, kissing him back and moaning lightly into it.

They pulled away, Alfred dripping a bit of drool from his lips, and Arthur wiped it smugly.

"Get a room, you two." Gilbert said, sticking his tongue out in disgust, making the air light once again. "Jesus, I live in a house with my two lovers, but…that's _way_ too PDA for me."

Matthew looked uncertain, guilty, and Francis only gripped his shoulder, smiling. "We all work together." He pointed out softly. "Surely, it's not as though he's leaving you?"

"But… Isn't Arthur taking advantage of him?" He asked softly, and Alfred growled a bit, staring flatly at Matthew before huffing loudly.

"Matt, you have to be the _last_ person in this room to have sex." He pointed out firmly. "I think you're the only virgin in here, 'cause lord knows lil' mister drug addiction right here needed _money_ for _meth_ until his dark side got him in the hospital, comatose." He said, completely fed up with Matthew, who looked scandalized at his twin.

Francis was laughing good-naturedly though. "Let's just say he's not a virgin any longer, though the first statement was correct." The Frenchman waggled his eyebrows, and Matthew went bright red with embarrassment, yelling that he had thought Francis wasn't going to tell anyone, and he got up on shaking legs in order to turn around and lightly hit Francis in his upset, the older man holding him up so that he didn't collapse on himself.

Alfred squeezed Arthur's hand, going a bit quiet, realizing he had admitted what had gotten him hospitalized in a roundabout way, but Arthur wrapped his arm around his boyfriend, and kissed the man's cheek. "I told you- I don't think Matthew would mind it anyway."

And then they kissed once again, letting Arthur's house devolve into chaos as the pets and the people filled the once quiet home with a racket of noise from arguing and laughter.

Arthur had to admit, it was a pleasant change all the way around.

XXXXX

A year later brought them to a "family reunion" of sorts. It wasn't all family, though the rest of Arthur's siblings had come to his home just outside of Manhattan to join Alistair, traveling all the way from Ireland and other places around the UK. No, there were many others as well.

Gilbert, Roderich and Liz were there, Elizabeta heavily pregnant but more than happy to come see people she had known in college. Roderich and Gilbert were being a bit overbearing, in Arthur's opinion, but it didn't look as though the woman minded all that much.

Natalia had caused a stir with her arrival, the Paparazzi trailing her and her cute little wife, Erika. However, they had been officially scared off by Lukas' boyfriend's cousin, who was one of the adopted fathers of Peter and named Berwald, said man was pushing 6'6 feet tall and was also the very definition of intimidation, despite how getting to know him a bit more told Arthur that he was a Swedish florist, and his husband was employed in chemical engineering. The other one was a cute man named Tino, who was likely a bit older than Alistair was at 35, who was happily chatting up Erika and Elizabeta, watching as Peter, now almost 18 years old raced to Arthur and brought the man into a tight hug, telling him what a jerk he was for never writing him.

Arthur focused on not becoming too irate with the fact his youngest brother was taller than him, about Alfred's height. Alfred of course found it hilarious, snickering at Peter and introducing himself as Arthur's boyfriend.

Lukas' boyfriend was a charming man named Mathias, and apparently Lukas was just playing hard to get with him, since they were both very clearly in love with each other. Emil, who Arthur had known as Lukas' younger brother from when they walked at graduation, was also there, looking tired of it all already, explained to Arthur that they had all been living together, along with Berwald's biological son from another marriage- who was living with his mother at the moment.

Francis and Matthew both showed up, trailing a man Arthur unfortunately recognized as Francis' best friend in college, Antonio, trailing his boyfriend Lovino. Lovino shouted when he recognized Gilbert- and through conversation with all of them, Arthur discovered Ludwig, Gilbert's younger brother, was dating Lovino's younger brother, Feliciano.

Roderich nearly spat out his appetizer when he saw Erika wandering around the party, playing with Arthur's cat, and the two sheepishly said hi to one another, asking about how their lives were going. Alfred asked, curious on how they knew each other, and Arthur found out that Erika's stepbrother was Vash Zwingli, Roderich's ex boyfriend from college. Erika mentioned that Vash was doing well, and she would have to tell him that his college friends were doing well also.

Vlad and his boyfriend and younger brother arrived late, Vlad cursing loudly in Romanian about how awful it was getting a flight out of Southeast Europe, but everything seemed to be working out fine.

Alfred, who was admittedly getting worn out from how loud it was, smiled tiredly and leaned against his boyfriend, who gave the man a soft kiss. "This world is so small." The American murmured. "Can you believe it?"

"Sometimes I can't." He agreed, before announcing that everyone had to be quiet- Alfred was getting stressed out and needed the volume of the crowd to lower.

After all, relationships didn't fix brain damage. Not that Arthur minded as he sat down at the dinner table with Alfred at his side, squeezing his hand tight, as the caterers of the event started to serve food.

As Alfred leaned over to kiss him again, Arthur smiled at him. No, they didn't fix brain damage. But, they could start healing old wounds, he admitted to himself as he poured himself a glass of champagne, and Elizabeta complained that she couldn't drink because of the baby in her stomach.

As they were served, everyone got on easily, conversation light and playful, talking about how much time it had been, and all the things in life that had brought them to this point.

Yes, life had brought them to where they were sitting right now, the best of it just as much as the worst of it.

"A toast." Arthur said, raising his glass. "To small worlds, and being reunited with people in the most unexpected of ways."

"Here, here!" The table called around, all of them clinking glasses and taking sips of whatever glass they had been holding up, from water, to juice, to Alfred's Coca-Cola.

Arthur put down the glass of champagne, and swallowed his fears as Alfred's sky blue eyes glittered at him with the promise of the future. He took out a box, and got down on one knee, and coughed, Alfred staring at him with joyful tears starting to glisten in his gaze.

"Alfred F. Jones, will you marry me?" Arthur asked, his voice the only thing in the whole conversation, the table quieted in anticipation of Alfred's answer.

The American nodded fervently, choked up as he replied, " _Yes, yes!_ Of course I will, Arthur!" Going to hug his now fiancé in a death grip but being stopped when Arthur met him with a kiss, grabbing his hand and sliding the golden, emerald and diamond studded ring onto his finger. The two embraced, and then looked out onto the crowd of family and friends, all clapping for them as the two sat back down, with another small kiss Arthur placed on Alfred's cheek.

Truly, he thought to himself as Alfred and he clasped hands underneath the table, he was so incredibly glad for reunions.


End file.
